Hypertension

Hypertension is a common chronic disorder with an increasing prevalence in the context of an aging population. Patients with hypertension are at risk for adverse cardiovascular, renal, and neurologic outcomes. Treatment of hypertension reduces this associated risk; therefore, early diagnosis and systematic management are critical in reducing morbidity and mortality. Although hypertension is multifactorial, a large component is related to lifestyle, including excess sodium intake, lack of physical activity, and obesity. Lifestyle intervention and education, therefore, are critical to both prevention and treatment of hypertension. Patients diagnosed with hypertension should be evaluated for their overall risk, with specific therapies and treatment targets guided by their characteristics and comorbidities. Several professional and guideline societies have published recommendations with regard to the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension, which have many similarities but also several areas of discussion and ongoing debate. Recent evolutions in the field include the expanded indications for home-based and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and outcomes trials, which add important data regarding optimal treatment targets. These evolutions are likely to be addressed in ongoing guideline updates. This review contains 10 figures, 15 tables, and 67 references. Key words: ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, antihypertensive therapy, blood pressure, blood pressure targets, cardiovascular risk, high blood pressure, home blood pressure monitoring, hypertension, screening, secondary hypertension