High blood pressure is a serious public health problem. It is extremely common and is a risk factor for numerous negative health consequences, particularly coronary heart disease and stroke. The research conducted by the SPRINT group “A Randomized Trial of Intensive versus Standard Blood-Pressure Control; was designed to provide data that a more intensive systolic blood pressure goal of <120 mmHg will have greater cardiovascular benefit than the standard goal of <140 mmHg. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay The experimental research was a randomized, controlled, open-label study conducted at 102 clinical sites, organized into 5 clinical center networks in the United States. Participants had to meet all of the following criteria: at least 50 years old, systolic blood pressure between 130 and 180 mm Hg, increased risk of cardiovascular events. Eligible participants were assigned a target systolic blood pressure of less than 140 mm Hg for the standard treatment group or less than 120 mm Hg in the intensive treatment group. The selected participants were then visited monthly for the first 3 months and every 3 months thereafter. During the study, 9,361 eligible patients were randomized into treatment groups and followed for an average of 3.26 years. Table 1 in the article shows the baseline characteristics of the included patients: the average age was 68 years and 64% were men. Medications for participants in the intensive treatment group were adjusted monthly to achieve a systolic blood pressure of less than 120 mmHg. Whereas, medications for individuals in the standard treatment group were adjusted to achieve a systolic blood pressure between 135 and 139 mm Hg, and the dosage was reduced if the systolic blood pressure was less than 130 mm Hg in a single visit or less than 135 mm Hg in a single visit. two check-ups. The authors stated that “dose adjustment was based on an average of three blood pressure measurements during an office visit while the patient was sitting and after 5 minutes of quiet rest; the measurements were carried out with the use of an automated measurement system”. The study ended early after the data and safety monitoring board noted that the primary outcome exceeded the monitoring limit at two consecutive points. However, after 1 year, the mean systolic blood pressure for participants in the intensive treatment group was 121.4 mm and 136.2 mm Hg for those in the standard treatment group. During 3.26 years of follow-up, the mean systolic blood pressure was 121.5 mm Hg in the intensive treatment group and 134.6 mm Hg in the standard treatment group. There were serious adverse events affecting 1,793 participants in the intensive treatment group and 1,736 participants in the standard treatment group. A total of 220 participants in the intensive treatment group and 118 participants in the standard treatment group had serious adverse events classified as “possibly or definitely related to the intervention.” The main finding of the study was the lower rate of primary outcome events (cardiovascular events including CVD mortality) in the intensive group compared to the standard group. As demonstrated in Table 2, the relative risk of death from cardiovascular causes was 43% lower with the intensive intervention compared with standard treatment. Research has shown that among adults with hypertension but without diabetes, lowering systolic blood pressure to a.
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