NICE lowers treatment threshold for high blood pressure

Patients with hypertension aged under 80 with an estimated 10 year risk of cardiovascular disease of 10% or more should be offered blood pressure lowering drugs, new NICE guidelines state.1

The recommendation represents a large reduction in the treatment threshold for hypertension, which was previously set at 20% risk of cardiovascular disease.

NICE said that the change would have a “significant impact on practice” with many more people becoming eligible for treatment, meaning more time and resources needed to start and monitor patients on antihypertensive drugs.

Clinical management of hypertension currently accounts for 12% of visits to primary care …