The new study reveals that people whose blood pressure varied the most (sometimes high, sometimes low or normal) were at six times the risk of having a stroke compared with people whose blood pressure remained fairly stable. This present study reported in the Lancet and carried out by John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK, involved more than 8,000 patients who had high blood pressure or a previous heart attack.
Current guidelines say that patients with only occasional high readings do not require treatment. But Professor Peter Rothwell, lead author of the study believes that episodic hypertension “should no longer be ignored”. This revelation could add a new dimension to the treatment offered to episodic hypertension patients by the GP.
The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence’s guidelines on high blood pressure is in the process of being rewritten and these latest studies will be taken into account. Additionally, the Stroke Association has called for clinical guidelines for treating patients to be reviewed because no special importance is currently attached to blood pressure.
Professor Peter Weissberg, medical director at the British Heart Foundation said: “Current practice is not wrong, but this might add a new measure to help doctors make decisions on who to treat for hypertension and which drug to use.”
Written by Snigdha