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Medical recommendations on treating hypertension in older people are changingand with it also who really needs to take medication. According to new guidelines scheduled for 2025, some adults over 65 years of age could no longer require drugs to control blood pressure.
For decades, receiving a diagnosis of hypertension almost automatically meant starting pharmacological treatment, especially in the elderly population. However, this approach is evolving towards a more individualized model.
Hypertension occurs when the blood pressure in the arteries remains constantly high.. This can force the heart to work harder and increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases such as heart attacks or strokes. Even so, not all cases present the same level of risk.
A group of researchers from several US institutions analyzed how the new guidelines would change medication prescribing. The key change is that it is no longer based solely on age, but on each patient’s long-term cardiovascular risk.
The study, published in a specialized medical journal, concludes that approximately 11% of people between 65 and 79 years old with early-stage hypertension would no longer be candidates to receive medication. This represents an important change with respect to previous recommendations, which advised treating all patients in that age range.
The profiles that would be left out of treatment tend to be people with good general health and a low risk of suffering cardiovascular problems in the next ten years. In many cases, these are women around 65 years old.
Experts highlight that this new approach allows treatments to be better directed towards those who really need them, opting for more personalized medicine and avoiding overmedication in low-risk patients.
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