Fifty million Americans suffering from high blood pressure got the roadmap they needed with the release of the JNC-7 guidelines http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/hypertension/ for treatment of hypertension by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.
According to the JNC-7 and the National Kidney Foundation (NKF), patients with high blood pressure along with kidney disease need specialized treatment in order to prevent cardiovascular disease, and minimize the progression of kidney disease. All high blood pressure is not the same and cannot be managed the same way. Many patients with kidney disease die of cardiovascular disease and high blood pressure is a reversible cause of cardiovascular disease. Chronic kidney disease affects 20 million Americans and thirty five percent of all new cases are caused by high blood pressure.
When high blood pressure is combined with kidney disease, the treatment also needs to include a combination of drugs. Pointing to the JNC-7 guidelines, the NKF offers these important tips for managing high blood pressure in those with kidney disease:
* Keep your patient's blood pressure goal below 130/80
* To get to that target blood pressure, patients will probably need more than one blood pressure medication. A combination of ACE inhibitors or angiotensin receptor blockers with diuretics are preferred drugs for patients with kidney disease.
* Lifestyle changes such as losing weight, stopping smoking and reducing salt intake are especially important for people who have kidney disease and high blood pressure.
