High BP Risk

Federal Health officials have ended a major study related to blood pressure two years earlier as they claim that they have found answer to a question that has troubled cardiologists for over decades – how low should blood pressure go? The answer to this old question is – way lower than the current guidelines.

Scientists from the National Institute of Health asserted that aggressive reduction of blood pressure to levels under current targets can drastically reduce risk of cardiovascular disease and death in hypertension patients. The study called ‘Sprint’ examined over 9,300 men and women who were at high risk of developing cardiovascular disease or had kidney disease. The study assigned one of two systolic blood pressure targets to patients, first below 120 which is lower than the prescribed guidelines and second below 150 for people above 60. Systolic pressure is the higher number in a blood pressure reading and it reflects the pressure exerted on arteries when the heart contracts and sends blood to the rest of the body.

The results revealed that people who were assigned to reach a goal below 120 and 150 had risk of heart attacks, heart failure and strokes reduced by one third and risk of death reduced by nearly a quarter.