Orthostatic hypotension should not deter intensive BP control: study

Orthostatic hypotension should not deter more intensive blood pressure control in adults with hypertension, according to US doctors who say it has no significant impact on treatment efficacy.
Their meta-analysis shows that standard or intensive blood pressure therapy cuts the risk of cardiovascular disease or all-cause mortality by 17% in patients with orthostatic hypotension versus 19% in those without.
The Harvard University–led team reviewed individual participant data from more than 29,000 adults (mean age 69) from nine clinical trials of blood pressure pharmacotherapy.
At the time of randomisation, 9% of participants had orthostatic hypotension — defined as a decrease in systolic blood pressure of ≥20mmHg and/or diastolic blood pressure of ≥10mmHg after changing from sitting to standing — and 5% had standing hypotension (≤110/≤60).