Have High
Blood Pressure? Aim for 140/90: Costa Rica
Study
For patients with high blood
pressure, there's no evidence that aiming
lower than the standard 140 over 90
millimeters mercury (mm Hg) will do any
good, according to a review of previous
studies.
High blood pressure is linked to heart
attack and stroke, and so the idea that
"lower is better" has recently caused some
doctors to recommend pushing blood pressure
targets to 135 over 85 mm Hg. (The higher
number in a blood pressure measurement is
the systolic pressure, while the lower
number is the diastolic pressure.)
However, in seven trials involving more than
22,000 patients, there were no differences
in the risk of heart attack, stroke, or
death between people who reached 140/90 and
those who reached 135/85.
Dr. Jose A. Arguedas, from the Universidad
deCosta Rica (UCR), and his colleagues
published their findings in the Cochrane
Library, part of the Cochrane Database of
Systemic Reviews.
To refine the findings, Arguedas's team
calls for more research on groups of
patients with particular conditions, such as
diabetes and kidney disease. |
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