JNC8 Hypertension Guidelines Pre-Clinic Presentation - 2/4/2014

The formulation of the Eighth Joint National Committee 2014 Evidence-Based Guideline for the Management of High Blood Pressure in Adults (JNC8 Hypertension Guidelines) included a systematic review of randomized controlled trials.

There are three main questions they wanted to answer in the systematic review:

1. In adults with hypertension, does initiating antihypertensive pharmacologic therapy at specific BP thresholds improve health outcomes?
2. In adults with hypertension, does treatment with antihypertensive pharmacologic therapy to a specified BP goal lead to improvements in health outcomes?
3. In adults with hypertension, do various antihypertensive drugs or drug classes differ in comparative benefits and harms on specific health outcomes?

We treat hypertension for cardiovascular and renal side effects, as well as overall mortality. They wanted to explore whether having a certain blood pressure prevent these morbidities and does treating with medication help. It should be noted that this was just for people who were already hypertensive (and not people who have pre-existing conditions that cause them to be prescribed beta blockers).

The JNC8 came up with 9 graded recommendations. It should be noted that only two of these recommendations received an "A" grade, and that age is an important qualifier in the A-graded Recommendation 2. For diabetes, a common comorbidity of hypertension, the JNC8 recommended a cutoff of 140 mm Hg and 90 mm Hg (more lenient than JNC8). These cutoffs also apply to chronic kidney disease as well.

We also discussed JNC8 recommendations for race-specific patient treatment.

Recommendation 1

In the general population aged ≥60 years, initiate pharmacologic treatment to lower blood pressure (BP) at systolic blood pressure (SBP) ≥150 mm Hg or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) ≥90 mm Hg and treat to a goal SBP <150 mm Hg and goal DBP <90 mm Hg. (Strong Recommendation – Grade A)

Corollary Recommendation

In the general population aged ≥60 years, if pharmacologic treatment for high BP results in lower achieved SBP (eg, <140 mm Hg) and treatment is well tolerated and without adverse effects on health or quality of life, treatment does not need to be adjusted. (Expert Opinion – Grade E)

Recommendation 2

In the general population <60 years, initiate pharmacologic treatment to lower BP at DBP ≥90 mm Hg and treat to a goal DBP <90 mm Hg. (For ages 30-59 years, Strong Recommendation – Grade A; For ages 18-29 years, Expert Opinion – Grade E)

Recommendation 3

In the general population <60 years, initiate pharmacologic treatment to lower BP at SBP ≥140 mm Hg and treat to a goal SBP <140 mm Hg. (Expert Opinion – Grade E)

Recommendation 4

In the population aged ≥18 years with chronic kidney disease (CKD), initiate pharmacologic treatment to lower BP at SBP ≥140 mm Hg or DBP ≥90 mm Hg and treat to goal SBP <140 mm Hg and goal DBP <90 mm Hg. (Expert Opinion – Grade E)

Recommendation 5

In the population aged ≥18 years with diabetes, initiate pharmacologic treatment to lower BP at SBP ≥140 mm Hg or DBP ≥90 mm Hg and treat to a goal SBP <140 mm Hg and goal DBP <90 mm Hg. (Expert Opinion – Grade E)

Recommendation 6

In the general nonblack population, including those with diabetes, initial antihypertensive treatment should include a thiazide-type diuretic, calcium channel blocker (CCB), angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI), or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB). (Moderate Recommendation – Grade B)

Recommendation 7

In the general black population, including those with diabetes, initial antihypertensive treatment should include a thiazide-type diuretic or CCB. (For general black population: Moderate Recommendation – Grade B; for black patients with diabetes: Weak Recommendation – Grade C)

Recommendation 8

In the population aged ≥18 years with CKD, initial (or add-on) antihypertensive treatment should include an ACEI or ARB to improve kidney outcomes. This applies to all CKD patients with hypertension regardless of race or diabetes status. (Moderate Recommendation – Grade B)

Recommendation 9

The main objective of hypertension treatment is to attain and maintain goal BP. If goal BP is not reached within a month of treatment, increase the dose of the initial drug or add a second drug from one of the classes in recommendation 6 (thiazide-type diuretic, CCB, ACEI, or ARB). The clinician should continue to assess BP and adjust the treatment regimen until goal BP is reached. If goal BP cannot be reached with 2 drugs, add and titrate a third drug from the list provided. Do not use an ACEI and an ARB together in the same patient. If goal BP cannot be reached using only the drugs in recommendation 6 because of a contraindication or the need to use more than 3 drugs to reach goal BP, antihypertensive drugs from other classes can be used. Referral to a hypertension specialist may be indicated for patients in whom goal BP cannot be attained using the above strategy or for the management of complicated patients for whom additional clinical consultation is needed. (Expert Opinion – Grade E)

Group Questions

1. What should we change in practice? The goal is less than 140, less than 90. In practice, you need to take many things into account. Giving a well defined trial on lifestyle changes, beforehand is important. Weight loss is a great way of minimizing hypertension.
2. What's the difference in outcomes between high diastolic and high systolic blood pressure? We do not entirely understand the differences in disease outcomes associated with the two.

-- Michal McDowell, MS I