An online resource from the JAMA Network can help physicians evaluate and adopt the new evidence-based guideline for managing hypertension in the one-third of U.S. adults who have the high-risk condition.
The new microsite offers access to such essential resources as:
- The new guideline published last month in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA)
- A flow chart of the treatment recommendations
- Editorials assessing the new guideline
- Previous guidelines
- Landmark medical articles on hypertension
The guideline provides nine recommendations that address three questions related to managing hypertension among adult patients:
- When should patients begin medication to control their high blood pressure?
- What blood pressure goal should patients achieve to enjoy the proven health benefits of their medication?
- What are the best medication choices to begin treatment for hypertension?
“For all persons with hypertension, the potential benefits of a healthy diet, weight control and regular exercise cannot be overemphasized,” the committee charged with creating the new guideline wrote in JAMA. “These lifestyle treatments have the potential to improve blood pressure control and even reduce medication needs.”
As part of its Improving Health Outcomes initiative, the AMA is focusing on improving outcomes around heart disease, starting with the 30 million people who have hypertension and a source of medical care but do not have their blood pressure under control.
The AMA is collaborating with the Johns Hopkins Medicine Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality and the Johns Hopkins Center to Eliminate Cardiovascular Health Disparities to develop and disseminate a model for better detection and management of high blood pressure in both the clinic and the community.
