From the Journals

Guideline Reclassifies 11% of Patients With Stage 1 Hypertension

Risk-based criteria reduced automatic treatment eligibility among older adults without high-risk comorbidities.

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A recent analysis in Annals of Internal Medicine reveals that the shift from age-based treatment criteria to individualized cardiovascular risk assessment could change the treatment eligibility for 240,000 US adults aged 65 to 79 with stage 1 hypertension. The updated American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology guideline emphasizes treating based on a 10-year cardiovascular risk of 7.5% or higher, rather than age alone. The study highlighted that 11% of untreated patients would no longer qualify for immediate pharmacotherapy under these new criteria.

Original Source(s)

Guideline Reclassifies 11% of Patients With Stage 1 Hypertension

  • by Kerri Miller

  • March 17, 2026

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