Tracking Top Number in Blood Pressure May Be Enough

"Gains made in achieving better control of diastolic blood pressure in the last few decades may be lost if the sole focus of hypertension guidelines becomes systolic blood pressure," Fonarow said. "Studies have suggested that drops in diastolic blood pressure to very low levels may increase cardiovascular risk for patients with coronary artery disease; under this single dimension proposal, this risk could be obscured," he said.

"Furthermore, measurement of both systolic and diastolic blood pressure are essential components of global cardiovascular risk assessment using the Framingham and other risk assessment scores, hence the need to retain routine diastolic blood pressure measurement," Fonarow said.

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For more about high blood pressure, visit the American Heart Association.