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DOI: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.107.183885
2007;50;e28-e55 Hypertension
O’Gara and Suzanne Oparil
Gore, Joseph L. Izzo, Jr, Norman M. Kaplan, Christopher M. O’Connor, Patrick T.
Clive Rosendorff, Henry R. Black, Christopher P. Cannon, Bernard J. Gersh, Joel
Clinical Cardiology and Epidemiology and Prevention
Association Council for High Blood Pressure Research and the Councils on
Ischemic Heart Disease: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart
REPRINT Treatment of Hypertension in the Prevention and Management of
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REPRINT
Treatment of Hypertension in the Prevention and Management of
Ischemic Heart Disease
A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association Council for High Blood
Pressure Research and the Councils on Clinical Cardiology and Epidemiology and Prevention
Clive Rosendorff, MD, PhD, FAHA, Chair; Henry R. Black, MD; Christopher P. Cannon, MD, FAHA;
Bernard J. Gersh, MB ChB, DPhil, FAHA; Joel Gore, MD, FAHA; Joseph L. Izzo, Jr, MD;
Norman M. Kaplan, MD; Christopher M. O’Connor, MD, FAHA;
Patrick T. O’Gara, MD, FAHA; Suzanne Oparil, MD, FAHA
Epidemiological studies have established a strong associ-ation between hypertension and coronary artery disease
(CAD). Hypertension is a major independent risk factor for
the development of CAD, stroke, and renal failure. The
optimal choice of antihypertensive agents remains controver-
sial, and there are only partial answers to important questions
in the treatment of hypertension in the prevention and
management of ischemic heart disease (IHD), such as:
● What are the appropriate systolic blood pressure (SBP) and
diastolic blood pressure (DBP) targets in patients at high
risk of developing CAD or in those with established CAD?
● Are the beneficial effects of treatment simply a function of
blood pressure (BP) lowering, or do particular classes of drugs
have uniquely protective actions in addition to lowering BP?
● Are there antihypertensive drugs that have shown particular
efficacy in the primary and secondary prevention of IHD?
● Which antihypertensive drugs should be used in patients
who have established CAD with stable or unstable angina
pectoris, in those with non–ST-elevation myocardial in-
farction (NSTEMI), and in those with ST-elevation myo-
cardial infarction (STEMI)?
This scientific statement summarizes the published data
relating to the treatment of hypertension in the context of
CAD prevention and management and attempts, on the basis
of the best available evidence, to develop recommendations
that will be appropriate for both BP reduction and the
management of CAD in its various manifestations. Where
data are meager or lacking, the writing group has proposed
consensus recommendations, with all of the reservations that
that term implies and with the hope that large gaps in our
knowledge base will be filled in the near future by data from
well-designed prospective clinical trials.
All of the discussion and recommendations refer to adults.
The writing committee has not addressed hypertension or IHD in
the pediatric age group. Also, there is no discussion of the
different modes of assessing BP, including 24-hour ambulatory
BP monitoring. These were the subject of an American Heart
Association (AHA) scientific statement in 2005.1
A classification of recommendation and level of evidence
have been assigned to each recommendation, according to the
AHA format as follows:
Classification of Recommendations:
Class I: Conditions for which there is evidence and/or
general agreement that a given procedure or treatment is
beneficial, useful, and effective.
Class II: Conditions for which there is conflicting
evidence and/or a divergence of opinion about the
usefulness/efficacy of a procedure or treatment.
Class IIa: Weight of evidence/opinion is in favor of
usefulness/efficacy.
The American Heart Association makes every effort to avoid any actual or potential conflicts of interest that may arise as a result of an outside
relationship or a personal, professional, or business interest of a member of the writing panel. Specifically, all members of the writing group are required
to complete and submit a Disclosure Questionnaire showing all such relationships that might be perceived as real or potential conflicts of interest.
This statement was approved by the American Heart Association Science Advisory and Coordinating Committee on April 9, 2007. A single reprint
is available by calling 800-242-8721 (US only) or writing the American Heart Association, Public Information, 7272 Greenville Ave, Dallas, TX
75231-4596. Ask for reprint No. 71-0412. To purchase additional reprints, call 843-216-2533 or e-mail kelle.ramsay@wolterskluwer.com.
This statement was previously published in the May 29, 2007, issue of Circulation (Circulation. 2007;115:2761–2788), and an erratum will be
published in the July 31, 2007, issue of Circulation. Those changes have been incorporated into this version of the statement. When this document is cited,
the American Heart Association would appreciate the following citation format: Rosendorff C, Black HR, Cannon CP, Gersh BJ, Gore J, Izzo JL Jr,
Kaplan NM, O’Connor CM, O’Gara PT, Oparil S. Treatment of hypertension in the prevention and management of ischemic heart disease: a scientific
statement from the American Heart Association Council for High Blood Pressure Research and the Councils on Clinical Cardiology and Epidemiology
and Prevention. Circulation. 2007;115:2761–2788.
Expert peer review of AHA Scientific Statements is conducted at the AHA National Center. For more on AHA statements and guidelines development,
visit http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier�3023366.
Permissions: Multiple copies, modification, alteration, enhancement, and/or distribution of this document are not permitted without the express
permission of the American Heart Association. Instructions for obtaining permission are located at http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?
identifier�4431. A link to the “Permission Request Form” appears on the right side of the page.
(Hypertension. 2007;50:e28-e55.)
© 2007 American Heart Association, Inc.
Hypertension is available at http://www.hypertensionaha.org DOI: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.107.183885
e28
AHA Scientific Statement
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Class IIb: Usefulness/efficacy is less well established
by evidence/opinion.
Class III: Conditions for which there is evidence and/or
general agreement that a procedure/treatment is not
useful/effective and in some cases may be harmful.
Level of Evidence:
Level of Evidence A: Data derived from multiple
randomized clinical trials or meta-analyses.
Level of Evidence B: Data derived from a single
randomized trial or nonrandomized studies.
Level of Evidence C: Only consensus opinion of
experts, case studies, or standard of care.
The general design of the scientific statement is based on
the concept that each of the clinical sections refers to a
particular subset of patients, so that each section should
provide a “stand-alone” description of the recommendations
and their justification, independent of the other sections. This
should make it easier for practitioners to extract the informa-
tion relevant to any particular patient, without needing to
cross-reference, and we hope it will thereby increase the
utility of the document. With this organization, there may be
some repetition of information from one section to the next,
but we have tried to keep that to a minimum. A summary of
the main recommendations is presented in the Table.
Epidemiology of Hypertension and CAD
Hypertension is a major independent risk factor for CAD,
stroke, and renal failure. The latest version of the Joint
National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation,
and Treatment of High Blood Pressure2 recommendations has
defined “hypertension” as a BP of �140/90 mm Hg. At this
cutoff value, at least 65 million adult Americans, or nearly
one fourth of the adult population of the United States, have
hypertension. Another one fourth of the population is in the
“prehypertension” range, defined as an SBP of 120 to
139 mm Hg or a DBP of 80 to 89 mm Hg.
There is a strong but complex association of BP and age.
Until about 50 years of age, SBP and DBP rise in tandem.
After age 50 years, SBP continues to rise steadily, whereas
DBP tends to fall. The prevalence of systolic hypertension is
thus directly proportional to the age of the population, and
more than half of Americans over age 65 years have isolated
systolic or combined systolic-diastolic hypertension. In con-
trast, the prevalence of diastolic hypertension diminishes, and
fewer than 10% of individuals over the age of 65 years have
diastolic hypertension. The Framingham Heart Study has
estimated the 20-year risk of developing hypertension as
�90% for men and women not yet hypertensive by middle
age (55 to 65 years of age).3 There is also an enhanced risk for
cardiovascular events associated with increased pulse pres-
sure; this is discussed more fully in the section on “Primary
Prevention of CAD in Hypertension: Observational Studies.”
There is a change with age in the relative importance of
SBP and DBP as risk indicators. Below age 50 years, DBP is
the major predictor of IHD risk, whereas above age 60, SBP
is more important.4 Because the prevalence of hypertension
increases with age, adequate control of both SBP and pulse
TABLE. Summary of Main Recommendations
Area of Concern
BP Target,
mm Hg
Lifestyle
Modification† Specific Drug Indications Comments
General CAD prevention �140/90 Yes Any effective antihypertensive drug or
combination‡
If SBP �160 mm Hg or DBP �100 mm Hg, then start with 2 drugs
High CAD risk* �130/80 Yes ACEI or ARB or CCB or thiazide diuretic or
combination
If SBP �160 mm Hg or DBP �100 mm Hg, then start with 2 drugs
Stable angina �130/80 Yes �-Blocker and ACEI or ARB If �-blocker contraindicated, or if side effects occur, can substitute
diltiazem or verapamil (but not if bradycardia or LVD is present)
Can add dihydropyridine CCB (not diltiazem or verapamil) to
�-blocker
A thiazide diuretic can be added for BP control
UA/NSTEMI �130/80 Yes �-Blocker (if patient is hemodynamically
stable) and ACEI or ARB§
If �-blocker contraindicated, or if side effects occur, can substitute
diltiazem or verapamil (but not if bradycardia or LVD is present)
Can add dihydropyridine CCB (not diltiazem or verapamil) to
�-blocker
A thiazide diuretic can be added for BP control
STEMI �130/80 Yes �-Blocker (if patient is hemodynamically
stable) and ACEI or ARB§
If �-blocker contraindicated, or if side effects occur, can substitute
diltiazem or verapamil (but not if bradycardia or LVD is present)
Can add dihydropyridine CCB (not diltiazem or verapamil) to
�-blocker
A thiazide diuretic can be added for BP control
LVD �120/80 Yes ACEI or ARB and �-blocker and aldosterone
antagonist¶ and thiazide or loop diuretic and
hydralazine/isosorbide dinitrate (blacks)
Contraindicated: verapamil, diltiazem, clonidine, moxonidine,
�-blockers
UA indicates unstable angina; LVD, LV dysfunction; and ACEI, ACE inhibitor.
Before making any management decisions, you are strongly urged to read the full text of the relevant section of the scientific statement.
*Diabetes mellitus, chronic kidney disease, known CAD or CAD equivalent (carotid artery disease, peripheral arterial disease, abdominal aortic aneurysm), or 10-year
Framingham risk score �10% (see Appendix).
†Weight loss if appropriate, healthy diet (including sodium restriction), exercise, smoking cessation, and alcohol moderation.
‡Evidence supports ACEI (or ARB), CCB, or thiazide diuretic as first-line therapy.
§If anterior MI is present, if hypertension persists, if LV dysfunction or HF is present, or if the patient has diabetes mellitus.
¶If severe HF is present (New York Heart Association class III or IV, or LVEF �40% and clinical HF). See text.
Rosendorff et al Treatment of Hypertension in Ischemic Heart Disease e29
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pressure rather than DBP in the elderly has become the
dominant public health imperative. However, nearly all of the
epidemiological and clinical trial data concerning outcomes
have been based on SBP and/or DBP, so there are few if any
data on the efficacy of antihypertensive drugs as a function of
pulse pressure. Also, at all ages, the relationship between SBP
or DBP and IHD mortality is consistent, robust, and contin-
uous, with no apparent threshold value. In a meta-analysis of
61 studies that included almost 1 million adults, BP was
related to fatal IHD over the BP range of 115/75 to 185/
115 mm Hg. Overall, each increase in SBP of 20 mm Hg (or
10 mm Hg in DBP) doubles the risk of a fatal coronary event.
Absolute risk of these adverse outcomes also increases with
age, such that for any given SBP, the risk of fatal CAD was
�16-fold higher for persons 80 to 89 years of age than for
those 40 to 49 years of age.5 In the Chicago Heart Association
Detection Project in Industry, men 18 to 39 years of age at
baseline with a BP of 130 to 139/85 to 89 mm Hg or with
stage 1 hypertension (140 to 159/90 to 99 mm Hg) accounted
for nearly 60% of all excess IHD, overall cardiovascular
disease, or all-cause mortality.6 On the basis of these epide-
miological data, it can be argued from a public health
perspective that many people with BPs previously regarded
as normal could benefit from BP reduction if they are at
significant risk for future coronary events for other reasons.7
Effects of Treatment
The risk of cardiovascular disease in the patient with hyper-
tension can be greatly reduced with effective antihypertensive
therapy. The major reductions in cardiovascular morbidity
and mortality over the past 50 years have been attributed
mainly to the increased availability and utilization of various
drug treatments for hypertension. Randomized trials have
shown that BP lowering produces rapid reductions in cardio-
vascular risk8 that are highly consistent with predictions of
risk reduction that can be inferred from observational studies.
For example, a 10-mm Hg–lower usual SBP (or a 5-mm Hg–
lower usual DBP) would predict a 50% to 60% lower risk of
stroke death and an approximately 40% to 50% lower risk of
death due to CAD or other vascular causes at middle age,
benefits that are only slightly less in older people.5 However,
there are data to show in very old individuals, those at least 85
years of age, that the association between high BP and
mortality is weaker9 and that lowering BP in patients older
than 80 years reduces stroke but not nonstroke (including
coronary) deaths.10
Several studies (HOPE [Heart Outcomes Prevention Eval-
uation], SAVE [Survival And Ventricular Enlargement], and
EUROPA [EUropean trial on Reduction Of cardiac events
with Perindopril in stable coronary Artery disease]; see
below) have shown a beneficial effect of angiotensin-
converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors on cardiovascular out-
comes in individuals, some hypertensive and some not but all
with established cardiovascular disease or with high risk for
the development of cardiovascular disease. However, we do
not yet have any outcome studies of treatment of “prehyper-
tension” in individuals with BPs in the range of 130 to 139/80
to 89 mm Hg. The only prospective clinical trial of BP
reduction in individuals with “normal” BPs is the TROPHY
(TRial Of Preventing HYpertension) study,11 in which sub-
jects with an SBP of 130 to 139 mm Hg or a DBP of 85 to
89 mm Hg were randomized to be treated for 2 years with
either the angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) candesartan or
placebo and followed up for an additional 2 years. Hyperten-
sion developed in significantly more participants in the
placebo group (two thirds of this cohort at 4 years) than in the
candesartan group, with a relative risk reduction of 66.3% at
2 years and 15.6% at 4 years. However, the study was not
designed or powered to assess cardiovascular outcomes.
Risk Factor Interactions
Data from the Framingham Heart Study have provided
evidence supportive of an interrelationship between hyper-
tension, dyslipidemia, glucose intolerance, cigarette smoking,
and left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy.12 These 5 primary risk
factors are the most important reversible determinants of
cardiovascular risk and appear to operate independently of
one another, although it appears that the risk increases in a
multiplicative rather than simply additive fashion. This has
led to the idea that the threshold at which a patient should be
treated for hypertension, as well as the goal to which he/she
should be treated, is lowered in those at high risk for
cardiovascular disease by virtue of the presence of other risk
factors. In the guidelines developed by the National Kidney
Foundation,13 this principle has been followed for patients
with albuminuria and even modest chronic renal insuffi-
ciency, for which the BP threshold for the institution of
antihypertensive therapy is 130/80 mm Hg. The American
Diabetes Association,14 the National Kidney Foundation,13
and the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection,
Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure2 all agree
that the BP goal of treatment in individuals with diabetes
mellitus or with chronic kidney disease should be �130/
80 mm Hg, a lower goal than that recommended for other
hypertensive patients (�140/90 mm Hg).
There is also a correlation between hypertension and body
mass, and both are strongly correlated with CAD. Hyperten-
sion and abdominal obesity are components of a larger risk
factor constellation of cardiovascular risk factors, the “met-
abolic syndrome,” which also includes a characteristic form
of dyslipidemia (high triglycerides and low high-density
lipoprotein cholesterol), and an elevated fasting blood glu-
cose level.15
Mechanisms of Hypertension and CAD
The diffuse arteriosclerosis of hypertension, the more patchy
atherosclerotic lesions of epicardial CAD, and the remodeling
of medium and small coronary arteries may all have common
pathophysiological mechanisms. Prevention and reversal of
these processes are major goals of therapy for hypertension,
CAD, and ischemic heart failure (HF).
Physical Forces and Hemodynamics
In hypertension, there is both an increased myocardial oxygen
demand and a diminished coronary blood flow or, at least, a
diminished coronary flow reserve. The increased demand is
due to the increased LV output impedance, which raises
intramyocardial wall tension, as well as to LV hypertrophy if
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present. The diminished coronary flow reserve is a complex
function of the plaque-related occlusive CAD, remodeling of
medium and small coronary arteries, and, if the diastolic
pressure is low enough, a decrease in coronary perfusion
pressure.
Physical forces (pressure and flow) are the primary deter-
minants of cardiac structure and function and also influence
v