Joanne Loades

Tackling hypertension: what’s new?

The acquisition of accurate and consistent blood pressure measurements is the responsibility of all healthcare professionals. This article includes latest recommendations on blood pressure targets in different patient groups and gives an overview of the latest evidence on pharmacological and non-pharmacological management of hypertension in primary care. There is still much work to be done in identifying people with hypertension, getting the right diagnosis and establishing effective treatments, including lifestyle modification through changing unhealthy behaviours. In the UK clinicians have access to evidence-based medications proven to lower blood pressure, but data suggest these are underused. There are potentially better ways of using the treatments we already have to improve the general management of hypertension. Six years on from the last National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines the evidence for combination therapy is growing, but it remains to be seen whether this is reflected in new guidance expected to be published in the next year.