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2014 Evidence-Based Guideline for the Management

of High Blood Pressure in Adults
Report Fromthe Panel Members Appointed
to the Eighth Joint National Committee (JNC 8)
Paul A. James, MD; Suzanne Oparil, MD; Barry L. Carter, PharmD; WilliamC. Cushman, MD;
Cheryl Dennison-Himmelfarb, RN, ANP, PhD; Joel Handler, MD; Daniel T. Lackland, DrPH;
Michael L. LeFevre, MD, MSPH; Thomas D. MacKenzie, MD, MSPH; Olugbenga Ogedegbe, MD, MPH, MS;
Sidney C. Smith Jr, MD; Laura P. Svetkey, MD, MHS; Sandra J. Taler, MD; Raymond R. Townsend, MD;
Jackson T. Wright Jr, MD, PhD; AndrewS. Narva, MD; Eduardo Ortiz, MD, MPH
Hypertension is the most common condition seen in primary care and leads to myocardial
infarction, stroke, renal failure, and death if not detected early and treated appropriately.
Patients want to be assured that blood pressure (BP) treatment will reduce their disease
burden, while clinicians want guidance on hypertension management using the best scientific
evidence. This report takes a rigorous, evidence-based approach to recommend treatment
thresholds, goals, and medications in the management of hypertension in adults. Evidence
was drawn fromrandomized controlled trials, which represent the gold standard for
determining efficacy and effectiveness. Evidence quality and recommendations were graded
based on their effect on important outcomes.
There is strong evidence to support treating hypertensive persons aged 60years or older to a
BP goal of less than 150/90mmHg and hypertensive persons 30through 59 years of age to a
diastolic goal of less than 90mmHg; however, there is insufficient evidence in hypertensive
persons younger than 60years for a systolic goal, or in those younger than 30years for a
diastolic goal, so the panel recommends a BP of less than 140/90mmHg for those groups
based on expert opinion. The same thresholds and goals are recommended for hypertensive
adults with diabetes or nondiabetic chronic kidney disease (CKD) as for the general
hypertensive population younger than 60years. There is moderate evidence to support
initiating drug treatment with an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, angiotensin
receptor blocker, calciumchannel blocker, or thiazide-type diuretic in the nonblack
hypertensive population, including those with diabetes. In the black hypertensive population,
including those with diabetes, a calciumchannel blocker or thiazide-type diuretic is
recommended as initial therapy. There is moderate evidence to support initial or add-on
antihypertensive therapy with an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or angiotensin
receptor blocker in persons with CKDto improve kidney outcomes.
Although this guideline provides evidence-based recommendations for the management of
high BP and should meet the clinical needs of most patients, these recommendations are not
a substitute for clinical judgment, and decisions about care must carefully consider and
incorporate the clinical characteristics and circumstances of each individual patient.
JAMA. 2014;311(5):507-520. doi:10.1001/jama.2013.284427
Published online December 18, 2013.
Editorial pages 472, 474, and
477
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Author Affiliations: Author
affiliations are listed at the end of this
article.
Corresponding Author: Paul A.
James, MD, University of Iowa, 200
Hawkins Dr, 01286-DPFP, Iowa City,
IA 52242-1097 (paul-james@uiowa
.edu).
Clinical Review&Education
Special Communication
507
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H
ypertensionremains oneof themost important prevent-
able contributors to disease and death. Abundant evi-
dencefromrandomizedcontrolledtrials(RCTs) hasshown
benefit of antihypertensive drug treatment in reducing important
health outcomes in persons with hypertension.
1-3
Clinical guide-
lines are at the intersectionbetweenresearchevidence andclinical
actions that can improve patient outcomes. The Institute of Medi-
cineReport Clinical PracticeGuidelines WeCanTrust outlinedapath-
way to guideline development and is the approach that this panel
aspired to in the creation of this report.
4
The panel members appointed to the Eighth Joint National
Committee (JNC 8) used rigorous evidence-based methods,
developing Evidence Statements and recommendations for blood
pressure (BP) treatment based on a systematic review of the lit-
erature to meet user needs,
especially the needs of the
primary care clinician. This
report is an executive sum-
mary of the evidence and is
designed to provide clear
recommendations for all
cl i ni ci ans. Maj or di ffer-
ences from the previous
JNC report are summarized
in Table 1. The complete
evi dence summary and
detailed description of the evidence review and methods are pro-
vided online (see Supplement).
The Process
The panel members appointed to JNC 8 were selected from more
than 400 nominees based on expertise in hypertension (n = 14),
primary care (n = 6), including geriatrics (n = 2), cardiology (n = 2),
nephrology (n = 3), nursing (n = 1), pharmacology (n = 2), clinical
trials (n = 6), evidence-based medicine (n = 3), epidemiology
(n = 1), informatics (n = 4), and the development and implementa-
tion of clinical guidelines in systems of care (n = 4).
The panel also included a senior scientist fromthe National In-
stituteof Diabetes andDigestiveandKidneyDiseases (NIDDK), ase-
nior medical officer fromthe National Heart, Lung, andBloodInsti-
tute(NHLBI), andasenior scientist fromNHLBI, whowithdrewfrom
authorship prior to publication. Two members left the panel early
intheprocess beforetheevidencereviewbecauseof newjobcom-
mitmentsthat preventedthemfromcontinuingtoserve. Panel mem-
bers disclosed any potential conflicts of interest including studies
evaluatedinthis report andrelationships withindustry. Those with
conflicts were allowed to participate in discussions as long as they
declaredtheir relationships, but theyrecusedthemselves fromvot-
ingonevidencestatements andrecommendations relevant totheir
relationships or conflicts. Four panel members (24%) had relation-
ships withindustry or potential conflicts todiscloseat theoutset of
the process.
In January 2013, the guideline was submitted for external
peer review by NHLBI to 20 reviewers, all of whom had expertise
in hypertension, and to 16 federal agencies. Reviewers also had
expertise in cardiology, nephrology, primary care, pharmacology,
research (including clinical trials), biostatistics, and other impor-
tant related fields. Sixteen individual reviewers and 5 federal
agencies responded. Reviewers comments were collected, col-
lated, and anonymized. Comments were reviewed and discussed
by the panel from March through June 2013 and incorporated
into a revised document. (Reviewers comments and suggestions,
and responses and disposition by the panel are available on
request from the authors.)
Questions Guiding the Evidence Review
This evidence-based hypertension guideline focuses on the pan-
els3highest-rankedquestionsrelatedtohighBPmanagement iden-
tified through a modified Delphi technique.
5
Nine recommenda-
tions aremadereflectingthesequestions. Thesequestions address
thresholds andgoals for pharmacologic treatment of hypertension
and whether particular antihypertensive drugs or drug classes im-
proveimportant healthoutcomescomparedwithother drugclasses.
1. Inadultswithhypertension, doesinitiatingantihypertensivephar-
macologic therapyat specific BPthresholds improvehealthout-
comes?
2. Inadults withhypertension, does treatment withantihyperten-
sive pharmacologic therapy to a specified BP goal lead to im-
provements in health outcomes?
3. In adults with hypertension, do various antihypertensive drugs
or drug classes differ incomparative benefits andharms onspe-
cific health outcomes?
The Evidence Review
The evidence reviewfocused on adults aged 18 years or older with
hypertension and included studies with the following prespecified
subgroups: diabetes, coronaryarterydisease, peripheral arterydis-
ease, heart failure, previous stroke, chronic kidney disease (CKD),
proteinuria, older adults, menandwomen, racial andethnic groups,
and smokers. Studies with sample sizes smaller than 100 were ex-
cluded, as were studies with a follow-up period of less than 1 year,
because small studies of brief duration are unlikely to yield enough
health-relatedoutcomeinformationtopermit interpretationof treat-
ment effects. Studies were included in the evidence reviewonly if
theyreportedtheeffectsof thestudiedinterventionsonanyof these
important health outcomes:
Overall mortality, cardiovascular disease (CVD)relatedmortality,
CKD-related mortality
Myocardial infarction, heart failure, hospitalization for heart fail-
ure, stroke
Coronary revascularization (includes coronary artery bypass sur-
gery, coronary angioplasty and coronary stent placement), other
revascularization (includes carotid, renal, andlower extremity re-
vascularization)
End-stage renal disease (ESRD) (ie, kidney failure resulting in di-
alysis or transplantation), doubling of creatinine level, halving of
glomerular filtration rate (GFR).
The panel limitedits evidence reviewtoRCTs because they are
less subject tobias thanother studydesigns andrepresent thegold
standard for determining efficacy and effectiveness.
6
The studies
ACEI angiotensin-converting enzyme
inhibitor
ARB angiotensin receptor blocker
BP blood pressure
CCB calciumchannel blocker
CKD chronic kidney disease
CVD cardiovascular disease
ESRD end-stage renal disease
GFR glomerular filtration rate
HF heart failure
Clinical Review&Education Special Communication 2014 Guideline for Management of High Blood Pressure
508 JAMA February 5, 2014 Volume 311, Number 5 jama.com
in the evidence review were from original publications of eligible
RCTs. These studies were used to create evidence tables and sum-
mary tables that were usedby the panel for their deliberations (see
Supplement). Because the panel conducted its own systematic re-
viewusing original studies, systematic reviews and meta-analyses
of RCTs conducted and published by other groups were not in-
cluded in the formal evidence review.
Initial searchdatesfor theliteraturereviewwereJanuary1, 1966,
through December 31, 2009. The search strategy and PRISMAdia-
gramfor each question is in the online Supplement. To ensure that
nomajor relevant studies publishedafter December 31, 2009, were
excluded from consideration, 2 independent searches of PubMed
andCINAHL betweenDecember 2009andAugust 2013 were con-
ductedwiththesameMeSHtermsastheoriginal search. Threepanel
members reviewed the results. The panel limited the inclusion cri-
teria of this second search to the following. (1) The study was a ma-
jor studyinhypertension(eg, ACCORD-BP, SPS3; however, SPS3did
not meet strict inclusion criteria because it included nonhyperten-
sive participants. SPS3 would not have changed our conclusions/
recommendations because the only significant finding supporting
alower goal for BPoccurredinaninfrequent secondaryoutcome).
7,8
(2) Thestudyhadat least 2000participants. (3) Thestudywas mul-
ticentered. (4) The study met all the other inclusion/exclusion cri-
teria. The relatively high threshold of 2000 participants was used
becauseof themarkedlylower event rates observedinrecent RCTs
such as ACCORD, suggesting that larger study populations are
neededtoobtaininterpretableresults. Additionally, all panel mem-
bers were asked to identify newly published studies for consider-
ation if they met the above criteria. No additional clinical trials met
the previously described inclusion criteria. Studies selected were
ratedfor quality usingNHLBIs standardizedquality ratingtool (see
Supplement) and were only included if rated as good or fair.
An external methodology team performed the literature re-
view, summarized data fromselected papers into evidence tables,
and provided a summary of the evidence. From this evidence re-
view, the panel crafted evidence statements and voted on agree-
ment or disagreement with each statement. For approved evi-
dence statements, the panel then voted on the quality of the
evidence (Table 2). Once all evidence statements for each critical
question were identified, the panel reviewed the evidence state-
ments to craft the clinical recommendations, voting on each rec-
ommendationandonthestrengthof therecommendation(Table3).
For both evidence statements and recommendations, a record of
the vote count (for, against, or recusal) was made without attribu-
tion. The panel attempted to achieve 100% consensus whenever
possible, but atwo-thirds majoritywas consideredacceptable, with
theexceptionof recommendations basedonexpert opinion, which
required a 75%majority agreement to approve.
Results (Recommendations)
The following recommendations are based on the systematic evi-
dence reviewdescribedabove (Box). Recommendations 1 through
5 address questions 1 and2 concerning thresholds andgoals for BP
treatment. Recommendations 6, 7, and 8 address question 3 con-
cerning selection of antihypertensive drugs. Recommendation 9is
asummaryof strategiesbasedonexpert opinionfor startingandadd-
ingantihypertensivedrugs. Theevidencestatementssupportingthe
recommendations are in the online Supplement.
Table 1. Comparison of Current Recommendations With JNC 7 Guidelines
Topic JNC 7 2014 Hypertension Guideline
Methodology Nonsystematic literature reviewby expert committee including a
range of study designs
Recommendations based on consensus
Critical questions and reviewcriteria defined by expert panel with
input frommethodology team
Initial systematic reviewby methodologists restricted to RCT
evidence
Subsequent reviewof RCT evidence and recommendations by the
panel according to a standardized protocol
Definitions Defined hypertension and prehypertension Definitions of hypertension and prehypertension not addressed,
but thresholds for pharmacologic treatment were defined
Treatment
goals
Separate treatment goals defined for uncomplicated hypertension
and for subsets with various comorbid conditions
(diabetes and CKD)
Similar treatment goals defined for all hypertensive populations
except when evidence reviewsupports different goals for a particu-
lar subpopulation
Lifestyle
recommendations
Recommended lifestyle modifications based on literature reviewand
expert opinion
Lifestyle modifications recommended by endorsing the evidence-
based Recommendations of the Lifestyle Work Group
Drug therapy Recommended 5 classes to be considered as initial therapy but rec-
ommended thiazide-type diuretics as initial therapy for most pa-
tients without compelling indication for another class
Specified particular antihypertensive medication classes for patients
with compelling indications, ie, diabetes, CKD, heart failure, myocar-
dial infarction, stroke, and high CVD risk
Included a comprehensive table of oral antihypertensive drugs in-
cluding names and usual dose ranges
Recommended selection among 4 specific medication classes (ACEI
or ARB, CCB or diuretics) and doses based on RCT evidence
Recommended specific medication classes based on evidence review
for racial, CKD, and diabetic subgroups
Panel created a table of drugs and doses used in the outcome trials
Scope of topics Addressed multiple issues (blood pressure measurement methods,
patient evaluation components, secondary hypertension, adherence
to regimens, resistant hypertension, and hypertension in special
populations) based on literature reviewand expert opinion
Evidence reviewof RCTs addressed a limited number of questions,
those judged by the panel to be of highest priority.
Reviewprocess
prior to
publication
Reviewed by the National High Blood Pressure Education Program
Coordinating Committee, a coalition of 39 major professional, pub-
lic, and voluntary organizations and 7 federal agencies
Reviewed by experts including those affiliated with professional and
public organizations and federal agencies; no official sponsorship by
any organization should be inferred
Abbreviations: ACEI, angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor; ARB,
angiotensin receptor blocker; CCB, calciumchannel blocker; CKD, chronic
kidney disease; CVD, cardiovascular disease; JNC, Joint National Committee;
RCT, randomized controlled trial
2014 Guideline for Management of High Blood Pressure Special Communication Clinical Review&Education
jama.com JAMA February 5, 2014 Volume 311, Number 5 509
Recommendation 1
In the general population aged 60 years or older, initiate pharma-
cologictreatment tolower BPat systolicbloodpressure(SBP) of 150
mmHg or higher or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) of 90mmHg or
higher and treat to a goal SBP lower than 150mmHg and goal DBP
lower than 90mmHg.
Strong Recommendation Grade A
Corollary Recommendation
In the general population aged 60 years or older, if pharmacologic
treatment for high BP results in lower achieved SBP (for example,
<140mmHg) and treatment is not associated with adverse effects
onhealthor quality of life, treatment does not needtobe adjusted.
Expert Opinion Grade E
Recommendation1 is basedonevidence statements 1 through
3 from question 2 in which there is moderate- to high-quality evi-
dence from RCTs that in the general population aged 60 years or
older, treating high BP to a goal of lower than 150/90 mm Hg re-
duces stroke, heart failure, andcoronaryheart disease(CHD). There
isalsoevidence(albeit lowquality) fromevidencestatement 6, ques-
tion 2 that setting a goal SBP of lower than 140 mm Hg in this age
group provides no additional benefit compared with a higher goal
SBP of 140to 160mmHg or 140to 149 mmHg.
9,10
Toanswer question2about goal BP, thepanel reviewedall RCTs
thatmettheeligibilitycriteriaandthateithercomparedtreatmentwith
a particular goal vs no treatment or placebo or compared treatment
with one BP goal with treatment to another BP goal. The trials on
whichtheseevidencestatementsandthisrecommendationarebased
includeHYVET, Syst-Eur, SHEP, JATOS, VALISH, andCARDIO-SIS.
1-3,9-11
Strengths, limitations, andotherconsiderationsrelatedtothisevidence
reviewarepresentedintheevidencestatement narrativesandclearly
support the benefit of treating toa BPlower than150mmHg.
Thecorollarytorecommendation1 reflects that therearemany
treated hypertensive patients aged 60years or older in whomSBP
is currentlylower than140mmHg, basedonimplementationof pre-
vious guideline recommendations.
12
The panels opinion is that in
these patients, it is not necessary to adjust medication to allowBP
Table 3. Strength of Recommendation
Grade Strength of Recommendation
A Strong Recommendation
There is high certainty based on evidence that the net benefit
a
is substantial.
B Moderate Recommendation
There is moderate certainty based on evidence that the net benefit is moderate to substantial or there is high
certainty that the net benefit is moderate.
C Weak Recommendation
There is at least moderate certainty based on evidence that there is a small net benefit.
D Recommendation against
There is at least moderate certainty based on evidence that it has no net benefit or that risks/harms outweigh
benefits.
E Expert Opinion (There is insufficient evidence or evidence is unclear or conflicting, but this is what the
committee recommends.)
Net benefit is unclear. Balance of benefits and harms cannot be determined because of no evidence, insuffi-
cient evidence, unclear evidence, or conflicting evidence, but the committee thought it was important to
provide clinical guidance and make a recommendation. Further research is recommended in this area.
N No Recommendation for or against (There is insufficient evidence or evidence is unclear or conflicting.)
Net benefit is unclear. Balance of benefits and harms cannot be determined because of no evidence, insuffi-
cient evidence, unclear evidence, or conflicting evidence, and the committee thought no recommendation
should be made. Further research is recommended in this area.
The strength of recommendation
grading systemused in this guideline
was developed by the National Heart,
Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBIs)
Evidence-Based Methodology Lead
(with input fromNHLBI staff, external
methodology team, and guideline
panels and work groups) for use by all
the NHLBI CVDguideline panels and
work groups during this project.
Additional details regarding the
strength of recommendation grading
systemare available in the online
Supplement.
a
Net benefit is defined as benefits
minus the risks/harms of the
service/intervention.
Table 2. Evidence Quality Rating
Type of Evidence Quality Rating
a
Well-designed, well-executed RCTs that adequately represent populations to which the results are applied and directly
assess effects on health outcomes
Well-conducted meta-analyses of such studies
Highly certain about the estimate of effect; further research is unlikely to change our confidence in the estimate of effect
High
RCTs with minor limitations affecting confidence in, or applicability of, the results
Well-designed, well-executed nonrandomized controlled studies and well-designed, well-executed observational studies
Well-conducted meta-analyses of such studies
Moderately certain about the estimate of effect; further research may have an impact on our confidence in the estimate
of effect and may change the estimate
Moderate
RCTs with major limitations
Nonrandomized controlled studies and observational studies with major limitations affecting confidence in,
or applicability of, the results
Uncontrolled clinical observations without an appropriate comparison group (eg, case series, case reports)
Physiological studies in humans
Meta-analyses of such studies
Low certainty about the estimate of effect; further research is likely to have an impact on our confidence in the estimate
of effect and is likely to change the estimate.
Low
Abbreviations: RCT, randomized controlled trial
a
The evidence quality rating systemused in this guideline was developed by the
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institutes (NHLBIs) Evidence-Based
Methodology Lead (with input fromNHLBI staff, external methodology team,
and guideline panels and work groups) for use by all the NHLBI CVDguideline
panels and work groups during this project. As a result, it includes the evidence
quality rating for many types of studies, including studies that were not used in
this guideline. Additional details regarding the evidence quality rating system
are available in the online Supplement.
toincrease. In2of thetrials that provideevidencesupportinganSBP
goal lower than150mmHg, theaveragetreatedSBPwas 143to144
mmHg.
2,3
Manyparticipants inthosestudies achievedanSBPlower
than 140mmHg with treatment that was generally well tolerated.
Twoother trials
9,10
suggest therewasnobenefit for anSBPgoal lower
than140mmHg, but theconfidenceintervalsaroundtheeffect sizes
were wide and did not exclude the possibility of a clinically impor-
tant benefit. Therefore, the panel included a corollary recommen-
dationbasedonexpert opinionthat treatment for hypertensiondoes
not need to be adjusted if treatment results in SBP lower than 140
mmHgandis not associatedwithadverseeffects onhealthor qual-
ity of life.
While all panel members agreed that the evidence supporting
recommendation1 is verystrong, thepanel was unabletoreachuna-
nimity onthe recommendationof a goal SBPof lower than150mm
Hg. Some members recommended continuing the JNC 7 SBP goal
of lower than 140mmHg for individuals older than 60years based
on expert opinion.
12
These members concluded that the evidence
was insufficient toraisetheSBPtarget fromlower than140tolower
than 150 mm Hg in high-risk groups, such as black persons, those
withCVDincludingstroke, andthosewithmultiplerisk factors. The
panel agreedthat moreresearchis neededtoidentifyoptimal goals
of SBP for patients with high BP.
Recommendation 2
In the general population younger than 60 years, initiate pharma-
cologic treatment to lower BP at DBP of 90 mm Hg or higher and
treat to a goal DBP of lower than 90mmHg.
For ages 30 through 59 years, Strong Recommendation Grade A
For ages 18 through 29 years, Expert Opinion Grade E
Recommendation 2 is based on high-quality evidence from 5
DBPtrials(HDFP, Hypertension-StrokeCooperative, MRC, ANBP, and
VA Cooperative) that demonstrate improvements in health out-
comes amongadults aged30through69years withelevatedBP.
13-18
Initiation of antihypertensive treatment at a DBP threshold of 90
mmHgor higher andtreatment toa DBPgoal of lower than90mm
Hg reduces cerebrovascular events, heart failure, and overall mor-
tality (question 1, evidence statements 10, 11, 13; question 2, evi-
dencestatement 10). Infurther support for aDBPgoal of lower than
90mmHg, thepanel foundevidencethat thereis nobenefit intreat-
ing patients to a goal of either 80mmHg or lower or 85 mmHg or
lower comparedwith90mmHgor lower basedonthe HOTtrial, in
which patients were randomized to these 3 goals without statisti-
cally significant differences between treatment groups in the pri-
maryor secondaryoutcomes (question2, evidencestatement 14).
19
In adults younger than 30 years, there are no good- or fair-
quality RCTs that assessedthebenefits of treatingelevatedDBPon
health outcomes (question 1, evidence statement 14). In the ab-
senceof suchevidence, it isthepanelsopinionthat inadultsyounger
than30years, the DBPthresholdandgoal shouldbe the same as in
adults 30through 59 years of age.
Recommendation 3
In the general population younger than 60 years, initiate pharma-
cologic treatment to lower BP at SBP of 140 mm Hg or higher and
treat to a goal SBP of lower than 140mmHg.
Box. Recommendations for Management of Hypertension
Recommendation 1
In the general population aged 60 years, initiate pharmacologic treat-
ment to lower blood pressure (BP) at systolic blood pressure (SBP) 150
mmHg or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) 90mmHg and treat to a goal
SBP <150 mm Hg and goal DBP <90 mm Hg. (Strong Recommendation
Grade A)
Corollary Recommendation
Inthe general populationaged60years, if pharmacologic treatment for
high BP results in lower achieved SBP (eg, <140mmHg) and treatment is
well toleratedandwithout adverseeffects onhealthor qualityof life, treat-
ment does not need to be adjusted. (Expert Opinion Grade E)
Recommendation 2
In the general population <60 years, initiate pharmacologic treatment to
lower BPat DBP90mmHgandtreat toagoal DBP<90mmHg. (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 BPat SBP140mmHgandtreat toagoal SBP<140mmHg. (Expert
Opinion Grade E)
Recommendation 4
In the population aged 18 years with chronic kidney disease (CKD), ini-
tiatepharmacologictreatment tolower BPat SBP140mmHgor DBP90
mmHgandtreat togoal SBP<140mmHgandgoal DBP<90mmHg. (Expert
Opinion Grade E)
Recommendation 5
Inthepopulationaged18yearswithdiabetes, initiatepharmacologictreat-
ment tolower BPat SBP140mmHgor DBP90mmHgandtreat toagoal
SBP<140mmHg andgoal DBP<90mmHg. (Expert Opinion Grade E)
Recommendation 6
In the general nonblack population, including those with diabetes, initial
antihypertensive treatment should include a thiazide-type diuretic, cal-
cium channel blocker (CCB), angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor
(ACEI), or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB). (Moderate Recommenda-
tion Grade B)
Recommendation 7
In the general black population, including those with diabetes, initial anti-
hypertensivetreatment shouldincludeathiazide-typediureticor CCB. (For
general black population: ModerateRecommendation GradeB; for black
patients with diabetes: Weak Recommendation Grade C)
Recommendation 8
In the population aged 18 years with CKD, initial (or add-on) antihyper-
tensive treatment should include an ACEI or ARB to improve kidney out-
comes. This applies toall CKDpatients withhypertensionregardless of race
or diabetes status. (Moderate Recommendation Grade B)
Recommendation 9
Themainobjectiveof hypertensiontreatment is toattainandmaintaingoal
BP. If goal BPis not reachedwithinamonthof treatment, increasethedose
of the initial drug or add a second drug from one of the classes in recom-
mendation6(thiazide-typediuretic, CCB, ACEI, or ARB). Theclinicianshould
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
drugfromthelist provided. Donot useanACEI andanARBtogether inthe
same patient. If goal BP cannot be reached using only the drugs in recom-
mendation6because of a contraindicationor the needtouse more than3
drugs to reach goal BP, antihypertensive drugs fromother classes can be
used. Referral toa hypertensionspecialist may be indicatedfor patients in
whomgoal BPcannot beattainedusingtheabovestrategyor for theman-
agement of complicated patients for whom additional clinical consulta-
tion is needed. (Expert Opinion Grade E)
Recommendation 3 is based on expert opinion. While there is
high-quality evidence to support a specific SBP threshold and goal
for personsaged60yearsor older (Seerecommendation1), thepanel
found insufficient evidence fromgood- or fair-quality RCTs to sup-
port a specific SBP threshold or goal for persons younger than 60
years. In the absence of such evidence, the panel recommends an
SBPtreatment thresholdof 140mmHg or higher andanSBPtreat-
ment goal of lower than 140mmHg based on several factors.
First, intheabsenceof anyRCTs that comparedthecurrent SBP
standardof 140mmHgwithanother higher or lower standardinthis
age group, there was no compelling reason to change current rec-
ommendations. Second, intheDBPtrialsthat demonstratedtheben-
efit of treatingDBPtolower than90mmHg, manyof thestudypar-
ticipants whoachievedDBPof lower than90mmHgwerealsolikely
to have achieved SBPs of lower than 140mmHg with treatment. It
is not possibletodeterminewhether theoutcomebenefits inthese
trials were due to lowering DBP, SBP, or both. Third, given the rec-
ommended SBP goal of lower than 140 mm Hg in adults with dia-
betes or CKD(recommendations 4and5), a similar SBPgoal for the
general population younger than 60 years may facilitate guideline
implementation.
Recommendation 4
In the population aged 18years or older with CKD, initiate pharma-
cologic treatment tolower BPat SBPof 140mmHgor higher or DBP
of 90mmHg or higher and treat to goal SBPof lower than 140mm
Hg and goal DBP lower than 90mmHg.
Based on the inclusion criteria used in the RCTs reviewed by
the panel, this recommendation applies to individuals younger
than 70 years with an estimated GFR or measured GFR less than
60 mL/min/1.73 m
2
and in people of any age with albuminuria
defined as greater than 30 mg of albumin/g of creatinine at any
level of GFR.
Recommendation4is basedonevidencestatements 15-17from
question2. Inadults younger than70years withCKD, the evidence
is insufficient to determine if there is a benefit in mortality, or car-
diovascular or cerebrovascular healthoutcomes withantihyperten-
sivedrugtherapytoa lower BPgoal (for example, <130/80mmHg)
comparedwithagoal of lower than140/90mmHg(question2, evi-
dence statement 15). There is evidence of moderate quality dem-
onstrating no benefit in slowing the progression of kidney disease
from treatment with antihypertensive drug therapy to a lower BP
goal (for example, <130/80mmHg) compared with a goal of lower
than 140/90mmHg (question 2, evidence statement 16).
Three trials that met our criteria for review addressed the
effect of antihypertensive drug therapy on change in GFR or time
to development of ESRD, but only one trial addressed cardiovas-
cular disease end points. Blood pressure goals differed across the
trials, with 2 trials (AASK and MDRD) using mean arterial pressure
and different targets by age, and 1 trial (REIN-2) using only DBP
goals.
20-22
None of the trials showed that treatment to a lower BP
goal (for example, <130/80 mm Hg) significantly lowered kidney
or cardiovascular disease end points compared with a goal of
lower than 140/90 mm Hg.
For patients with proteinuria (>3 g/24 hours), post hoc analy-
sis from only 1 study (MDRD) indicated benefit from treatment to
a lower BP goal (<130/80 mm Hg), and this related to kidney out-
comes only.
22
Although post hoc observational analyses of data
fromthis trial and others suggested benefit fromthe lower goal at
lower levels of proteinuria, this result was not seen in the primary
analyses or in AASK or REIN-2 (question 2, evidence statement
17).
20,21
Based on available evidence the panel cannot make a recom-
mendation for a BP goal for people aged 70 years or older with
GFR less than 60 mL/min/1.73m
2
. The commonly used estimating
equations for GFR were not developed in populations with signifi-
cant numbers of people older than 70 years and have not been
validated in older adults. No outcome trials reviewed by the panel
included large numbers of adults older than 70 years with CKD.
Further, the diagnostic criteria for CKDdo not consider age-related
decline in kidney function as reflected in estimated GFR. Thus,
when weighing the risks and benefits of a lower BP goal for people
aged 70 years or older with estimated GFR less than 60 mL/min/
1.73m
2
, antihypertensive treatment should be individualized, tak-
ing into consideration factors such as frailty, comorbidities, and
albuminuria.
Recommendation 5
Inthepopulationaged18years or older withdiabetes, initiatephar-
macologic treatment to lower BP at SBP of 140mmHg or higher or
DBP of 90 mm Hg or higher and treat to a goal SBP of lower than
140mmHg and goal DBP lower than 90mmHg.
Recommendation5is basedonevidencestatements 18-21 from
question2, whichaddress BPgoals inadults withbothdiabetes and
hypertension. Thereismoderate-qualityevidencefrom3trials(SHEP,
Syst-Eur, and UKPDS) that treatment to an SBP goal of lower than
150mmHgimproves cardiovascular andcerebrovascular healthout-
comes andlowers mortality(seequestion2, evidencestatement 18)
in adults with diabetes and hypertension.
23-25
No RCTs addressed
whether treatment to an SBP goal of lower than 140 mmHg com-
paredwithahigher goal (for example, <150mmHg) improves health
outcomes inadults withdiabetes andhypertension. Intheabsence
of suchevidence, the panel recommends anSBPgoal of lower than
140mmHganda DBPgoal lower than90mmHginthis population
based on expert opinion, consistent with the BP goals in recom-
mendation3for thegeneral populationyounger than60years with
hypertension. Use of a consistent BPgoal inthe general population
younger than 60 years and in adults with diabetes of any age may
facilitateguidelineimplementation. Thisrecommendationfor anSBP
goal of lower than 140mmHg in patients with diabetes is also sup-
portedbytheACCORD-BPtrial, inwhichthecontrol groupusedthis
goal and had similar outcomes compared with a lower goal.
7
The panel recognizes that the ADVANCE trial tested the ef-
fects of treatment to lower BP on major macrovascular and micro-
vascular events in adults with diabetes who were at increased risk
of CVD, but the study didnot meet the panels inclusion criteria be-
causeparticipantswereeligibleirrespectiveof baselineBP, andthere
were no randomized BP treatment thresholds or goals.
26
The panel also recognizes that an SBP goal of lower than 130
mmHgis commonlyrecommendedfor adults withdiabetes andhy-
pertension. However, this lower SBP goal is not supported by any
RCT that randomized participants into 2 or more groups in which
treatment was initiated at a lower SBP threshold than 140 mm Hg
or into treatment groups in which the SBP goal was lower than 140
mmHgandthat assessedtheeffects of alower SBPthresholdor goal
onimportant healthoutcomes. TheonlyRCTthat comparedanSBP
treatment goal of lower than140mmHg witha lower SBPgoal and
assessedthe effects onimportant healthoutcomes is ACCORD-BP,
which compared an SBP treatment goal of lower than 120 mm Hg
with a goal lower than 140mmHg.
7
There was no difference in the
primary outcome, a composite of cardiovascular death, nonfatal
myocardial infarction, and nonfatal stroke. There were also no dif-
ferences in any of the secondary outcomes except for a reduction
in stroke. However, the incidence of stroke in the group treated to
lower than 140 mmHg was much lower than expected, so the ab-
solute difference in fatal and nonfatal stroke between the 2 groups
was only 0.21%per year. The panel concludedthat the results from
ACCORD-BP did not provide sufficient evidence to recommend an
SBP goal of lower than 120 mmHg in adults with diabetes and hy-
pertension.
The panel similarly recommends the same goal DBP in adults
with diabetes and hypertension as in the general population (<90
mmHg). Despite some existing recommendations that adults with
diabetes andhypertensionshouldbetreatedtoaDBPgoal of lower
than 80 mmHg, the panel did not find sufficient evidence to sup-
port such a recommendation. For example, there are no good- or
fair-quality RCTs withmortality as a primary or secondary prespeci-
fied outcome that compared a DBP goal of lower than 90 mm Hg
with a lower goal (evidence statement 21).
IntheHOTtrial, whichis frequentlycitedtosupport alower DBP
goal, investigators compareda DBPgoal of 90mmHg or lower vs a
goal of 80mmHg or lower.
19
The lower goal was associated with a
reductioninacompositeCVDoutcome(question2, evidencestate-
ment 20), but this was a post hoc analysis of a small subgroup(8%)
of the study population that was not prespecified. As a result, the
evidence was graded as lowquality.
Another commonly cited study to support a lower DBP goal is
UKPDS,
25
which had a BP goal of lower than 150/85 mmHg in the
more-intensivelytreatedgroupcomparedwitha goal of lower than
180/105 mm Hg in the less-intensively treated group. UKPDS did
showthat treatment inthelower goal BPgroupwas associatedwith
asignificantlylower rateof stroke, heart failure, diabetes-relatedend
points, anddeaths relatedtodiabetes. However, thecomparisonin
UKPDS was a DBP goal of lower than 85 mm Hg vs lower than105
mm Hg; therefore, it is not possible to determine whether treat-
ment to a DBP goal of lower than 85 mm Hg improves outcomes
compared with treatment to a DBP goal of lower than 90 mm Hg.
Inaddition, UKPDS was a mixedsystolic anddiastolic BPgoal study
(combined SBP and DBP goals), so it cannot be determined if the
benefits were due to lowering SBP, DBP, or both.
Recommendation 6
In the general nonblack population, including those with diabetes,
initial antihypertensivetreatment shouldincludeathiazide-typedi-
uretic, calcium channel blocker (CCB), angiotensin-converting en-
zyme inhibitor (ACEI), or angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB).
Moderate Recommendation Grade B
For this recommendation, only RCTs that compared one class
of antihypertensive medication to another and assessed the
effects on health outcomes were reviewed; placebo-controlled
RCTs were not included. However, the evidence review was
informed by major placebo-controlled hypertension trials, includ-
ing 3 federally funded trials (VA Cooperative Trial, HDFP, and
SHEP), that were pivotal in demonstrating that treatment of
hypertension with antihypertensive medications reduces cardio-
vascular or cerebrovascular events and/or mortality.
3,13,18
These
trials all used thiazide-type diuretics compared with placebo or
usual care as the basis of therapy. Additional evidence that BP
l oweri ng reduces ri sk comes from tri al s of -bl ocker vs
placebo
16,27
and CCB vs placebo.
1
Each of the 4 drug classes recommended by the panel in rec-
ommendation6yieldedcomparableeffects onoverall mortalityand
cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, andkidneyoutcomes, withoneex-
ception: heart failure. Initial treatment with a thiazide-type di-
uretic was more effective than a CCBor ACEI (question 3, evidence
statements 14 and 15), and an ACEI was more effective than a CCB
(question 3, evidence statement 1) in improving heart failure out-
comes. Whilethepanel recognizedthat improvedheart failureout-
comes was animportant findingthat shouldbeconsideredwhense-
lecting a drug for initial therapy for hypertension, the panel did not
conclude that it was compelling enough within the context of the
overall bodyof evidencetoprecludetheuseof theother drugclasses
for initial therapy. The panel also acknowledged that the evidence
supported BP control, rather than a specific agent used to achieve
that control, as themost relevant considerationfor this recommen-
dation.
The panel did not recommend -blockers for the initial treat-
ment of hypertension because in one study use of -blockers re-
sultedina higher rate of the primary composite outcome of cardio-
vascular death, myocardial infarction, or stroke comparedtouse of
an ARB, a finding that was driven largely by an increase in stroke
(question3, evidencestatement 22).
28
Intheother studiesthat com-
pareda-blocker tothe4recommendeddrugclasses, the-blocker
performed similarly to the other drugs (question 3, evidence state-
ment 8) or the evidence was insufficient to make a determination
(question 3, evidence statements 7, 12, 21, 23, and 24).
-Blockers were not recommended as first-line therapy be-
cause in one study initial treatment with an -blocker resulted in
worse cerebrovascular, heart failure, and combined cardiovascular
outcomes than initial treatment with a diuretic (question 3, evi-
dence statement 13).
29
There were no RCTs of good or fair quality
comparingthefollowingdrugclassestothe4recommendedclasses:
dual
1
- + -blocking agents (eg, carvedilol), vasodilating -block-
ers (eg, nebivolol), central
2
-adrenergic agonists (eg, clonidine), di-
rect vasodilators (eg, hydralazine), aldosterone receptor antago-
nists (eg, spironolactone), adrenergic neuronal depleting agents
(reserpine), and loop diuretics (eg, furosemide) (question 3, evi-
dencestatement 30). Therefore, thesedrugclasses arenot recom-
mendedas first-linetherapy. Inaddition, noeligibleRCTs wereiden-
tified that compared a diuretic vs an ARB, or an ACEI vs an ARB.
ONTARGET was not eligible because hypertension was not re-
quired for inclusion in the study.
30
Similar to those for the general population, this recommenda-
tion applies to those with diabetes because trials including partici-
pants withdiabetes showednodifferences inmajor cardiovascular
or cerebrovascular outcomes fromthose in the general population
(question 3, evidence statements 36-48).
The following important points should be noted. First, many
people will require treatment with more than one antihyperten-
sive drug to achieve BP control. While this recommendation ap-
plies onlytothechoiceof theinitial antihypertensivedrug, thepanel
suggeststhat anyof these4classeswouldbegoodchoicesasadd-on
agents (recommendation 9). Second, this recommendation is spe-
cific for thiazide-type diuretics, which include thiazide diuretics,
chlorthalidone, and indapamide; it does not include loop or potas-
sium-sparing diuretics. Third, it is important that medications be
dosedadequatelytoachieveresults similar tothoseseenintheRCTs
(Table 4). Fourth, RCTs that were limited to specific nonhyperten-
sivepopulations, suchas thosewithcoronaryarterydiseaseor heart
failure, werenot reviewedfor this recommendation. Therefore, rec-
ommendation 6 should be applied with caution to these popula-
tions. Recommendations for those with CKD are addressed in rec-
ommendation 8.
Recommendation 7
In the general black population, including those with diabetes, ini-
tial antihypertensive treatment should include a thiazide-type di-
uretic or CCB.
For general black population: Moderate Recommendation Grade B
For black patients with diabetes: Weak Recommendation Grade C
Recommendation7isbasedonevidencestatementsfromques-
tion 3. In cases for which evidence for the black population was the
sameas for thegeneral population, theevidencestatements for the
general population apply to the black population. However, there
are some cases for which the results for black persons were differ-
ent from the results for the general population (question 3, evi-
dence statements 2, 10, and 17). In those cases, separate evidence
statements were developed.
This recommendation stems from a prespecified subgroup
analysis of data from a single large trial (ALLHAT) that was rated
good.
31
In that study, a thiazide-type diuretic was shown to be
more effective in improving cerebrovascular, heart failure, and
combined cardiovascular outcomes compared to an ACEI in the
black patient subgroup, which included large numbers of diabetic
and nondiabetic participants (question 3, evidence statements 10,
15 and 17). Therefore, the recommendation is to choose thiazide-
type diuretics over ACEI for black patients. Although a CCB was
less effective than a diuretic in preventing heart failure in the black
subgroup of this trial (question 3, evidence statement 14), there
were no differences in other outcomes (cerebrovascular, CHD,
combined cardiovascular, and kidney outcomes, or overall mortal-
ity) between a CCB and a diuretic (question 3, evidence state-
ments 6, 8, 11, 18, and 19). Therefore, both thiazide-type diuretics
and CCBs are recommended as first-line therapy for hypertension
in black patients.
The panel recommended a CCB over an ACEI as first-line
therapy in black patients because there was a 51% higher rate
(relative risk, 1.51; 95% CI, 1.22-1.86) of stroke in black persons in
ALLHAT with the use of an ACEI as initial therapy compared with
use of a CCB (question 3, evidence statement 2).
32
The ACEI was
also less effective in reducing BP in black individuals compared
with the CCB (question 3, evidence statement 2).
32
There were no
outcome studies meeting our eligibility criteria that compared
diuretics or CCBs vs -blockers, ARBs, or other renin-angiotensin
systeminhibitors in black patients.
Therecommendationfor blackpatients withdiabetes is weaker
than the recommendation for the general black population be-
causeoutcomesfor thecomparisonbetweeninitial useof aCCBcom-
pared to initial use of an ACEI in black persons with diabetes were
not reported in any of the studies eligible for our evidence review.
Table 4. Evidence-Based Dosing for Antihypertensive Drugs
Antihypertensive Medication Initial Daily Dose, mg
Target Dose
in RCTs Reviewed, mg No. of Doses per Day
ACE inhibitors
Captopril 50 150-200 2
Enalapril 5 20 1-2
Lisinopril 10 40 1
Angiotensin receptor blockers
Eprosartan 400 600-800 1-2
Candesartan 4 12-32 1
Losartan 50 100 1-2
Valsartan 40-80 160-320 1
Irbesartan 75 300 1
-Blockers
Atenolol 25-50 100 1
Metoprolol 50 100-200 1-2
Calcium channel blockers
Amlodipine 2.5 10 1
Diltiazem extended release 120-180 360 1
Nitrendipine 10 20 1-2
Thiazide-type diuretics
Bendroflumethiazide 5 10 1
Chlorthalidone 12.5 12.5-25 1
Hydrochlorothiazide 12.5-25 25-100
a
1-2
Indapamide 1.25 1.25-2.5 1
Abbreviations: ACE,
angiotensin-converting enzyme; RCT,
randomized controlled trial.
a
Current recommended
evidence-based dose that balances
efficacy and safety is 25-50mg daily.
Therefore, this evidencewas extrapolatedfromfindings intheblack
participants inALLHAT, 46%of whomhaddiabetes. Additional sup-
port comes from a post hoc analysis of black participants in ALL-
HATthat met thecriteriafor themetabolicsyndrome, 68%of whom
haddiabetes.
33
However, this studydidnot meet thecriteriafor our
reviewbecauseit was apost hocanalysis. This recommendationalso
does not address blackpersons withCKD, whoareaddressedinrec-
ommendation 8.
Recommendation 8
In the population aged 18 years or older with CKD and hyperten-
sion, initial (or add-on) antihypertensive treatment should include
anACEI or ARBtoimprovekidneyoutcomes. This applies toall CKD
patients with hypertension regardless of race or diabetes status.
Moderate Recommendation Grade B
Theevidenceis moderate(question3, evidencestatements 31-
32) that treatment withanACEI or ARBimproves kidney outcomes
for patients with CKD. This recommendation applies to CKD pa-
tients with and without proteinuria, as studies using ACEIs or ARBs
showed evidence of improved kidney outcomes in both groups.
This recommendation is based primarily on kidney outcomes
because there is less evidence favoring ACEI or ARB for cardiovas-
cular outcomes in patients with CKD. Neither ACEIs nor ARBs im-
proved cardiovascular outcomes for CKD patients compared with
a-blocker or CCB(question3, evidencestatements33-34). Onetrial
(IDNT) didshowimprovement inheart failureoutcomes withanARB
compared with a CCB, but this trial was restricted to a population
with diabetic nephropathy and proteinuria (question 3, evidence
statement 5).
34
There are no RCTs in the evidence review that di-
rectlycomparedACEI toARBfor anycardiovascular outcome. How-
ever, both are renin-angiotensin system inhibitors and have been
shown to have similar effects on kidney outcomes (question 3, evi-
dence statements 31-32).
Recommendation 8 is specifically directed at those with CKD
and hypertension and addresses the potential benefit of specific
drugs on kidney outcomes. The AASK study showed the benefit of
an ACEI on kidney outcomes in black patients with CKD and pro-
videsadditional evidencethat supportsACEI useinthat population.
21
Additional trials that support the benefits of ACEI or ARB therapy
did not meet our inclusion criteria because they were not re-
stricted to patients with hypertension.
35,36
Direct renin inhibitors
arenot includedinthisrecommendationbecausetherewerenostud-
ies demonstrating their benefits on kidney or cardiovascular out-
comes.
Thepanel notedthepotential conflict betweenthis recommen-
dation to use an ACEI or ARB in those with CKD and hypertension
and the recommendation to use a diuretic or CCB (recommenda-
tion7) inblack persons: what if the personis black andhas CKD? To
answer this, thepanel reliedonexpert opinion. Inblackpatients with
CKD and proteinuria, an ACEI or ARB is recommended as initial
therapy because of the higher likelihood of progression to ESRD.
21
In black patients with CKD but without proteinuria, the choice for
initial therapyis less clear andincludes athiazide-typediuretic, CCB,
ACEI, or ARB. If an ACEI or ARB is not used as the initial drug, then
an ACEI or ARB can be added as a second-line drug if necessary to
achieve goal BP. Because the majority of patients with CKDand hy-
pertension will require more than 1 drug to achieve goal BP, it is an-
ticipatedthat anACEI or ARBwill be usedeither as initial therapy or
as second-line therapy in addition to a diuretic or CCB in black pa-
tients with CKD.
Recommendation8applies toadults aged18years or older with
CKD, but there is no evidence to support renin-angiotensin system
inhibitor treatment in those older than 75 years. Although treat-
ment with an ACEI or ARB may be beneficial in those older than 75
years, use of a thiazide-type diuretic or CCBis also an option for in-
dividuals with CKDin this age group.
Use of anACEI or anARBwill commonly increase serumcreati-
nine and may produce other metabolic effects such as hyperkale-
mia, particularly in patients with decreased kidney function. Al-
thoughanincreaseincreatinineor potassiumlevel does not always
require adjusting medication, use of renin-angiotensin system in-
hibitorsintheCKDpopulationrequiresmonitoringof electrolyteand
serum creatinine levels, and in some cases, may require reduction
in dose or discontinuation for safety reasons.
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 treat-
ment, 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 the drugs in recommendation 6 because of a contraindica-
tion or the need to use more than 3 drugs to reach goal BP, anti-
hypertensive 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.
Recommendation9was developedbythepanel inresponseto
a perceived need for further guidance to assist in implementation
of recommendations 1 through 8. Recommendation 9 is based on
strategies used in RCTs that demonstrated improved patient out-
comes andtheexpertiseandclinical experienceof panel members.
This recommendationdiffers fromtheother recommendations be-
cause it was not developed in response to the 3 critical questions
using a systematic review of the literature. The Figure is an algo-
rithm summarizing the recommendations. However, this algo-
rithmhas not beenvalidatedwithrespect toachievingimprovedpa-
tient outcomes.
How should clinicians titrate and combine the drugs recom-
mended in this report? There were no RCTs and thus the panel
relied on expert opinion. Three strategies (Table 5) have been
used in RCTs of high BP treatment but were not compared with
each other. Based on the evidence reviewed for questions 1
through 3 and on the expert opinion of the panel members, it is
not known if one of the strategies results in improved cardiovas-
cular outcomes, cerebrovascular outcomes, kidney outcomes, or
mortality compared with an alternative strategy. There is not
likely to be evidence fromwell-designed RCTs that compare these
Figure. 2014 Hypertension Guideline Management Algorithm
Adult aged 18 years with hypertension
Select a drug treatment titration strategy
A. Maximize first medication before adding second or
B. Add second medication before reaching maximum dose of first medication or
C. Start with 2 medication classes separately or as fixed-dose combination.
Reinforce medication and lifestyle adherence.
For strategies A and B, add and titrate thiazide-type diuretic or ACEI or ARB or CCB (use
medication class not previously selected and avoid combined use of ACEI and ARB).
For strategy C, titrate doses of initial medications to maximum.
Add and titrate thiazide-type diuretic or ACEI or ARB or CCB (use medication class
not previously selected and avoid combined use of ACEI and ARB).
Add additional medication class (eg, -blocker, aldosterone antagonist, or others)
and/or refer to physician with expertise in hypertension management.
Continue current
treatment and
monitoring.
b
Black All races Nonblack
Age 60 years
Blood pressure goal
SBP <150 mm Hg
DBP <90 mm Hg
Blood pressure goal
SBP <140 mm Hg
DBP <90 mm Hg
Age <60 years
Blood pressure goal
SBP <140 mm Hg
DBP <90 mm Hg
All ages
Diabetes present
No CKD
Blood pressure goal
SBP <140 mm Hg
DBP <90 mm Hg
All ages
CKD present with
or without diabetes
At goal blood pressure?
No
Yes
No
Yes
No
Yes
Yes No
Initiate thiazide-type diuretic
or CCB, alone
or in combination.
Initiate thiazide-type diuretic
or ACEI or ARB or CCB, alone
or in combination.
a
Initiate ACEI or ARB, alone
or in combination with other
drug class.
a
Set blood pressure goal and initiate blood pressure lowering-medication
based on age, diabetes, and chronic kidney disease (CKD).
Implement lifestyle interventions
(continue throughout management).
Diabetes or CKD present
General population
(no diabetes or CKD)
SBP indicates systolic blood pressure; DBP, diastolic blood pressure; ACEI,
angiotensin-converting enzyme; ARB, angiotensin receptor blocker; and CCB,
calciumchannel blocker.
a
ACEIs and ARBs should not be used in combination.
b
If blood pressure fails to be maintained at goal, reenter the algorithmwhere
appropriate based on the current individual therapeutic plan.
strategies and assess their effects on important health outcomes.
There may be evidence that different strategies result in more
rapid attainment of BP goal or in improved adherence, but those
are intermediate outcomes that were not included in the evi-
dence review. Therefore, each strategy is an acceptable pharma-
cologic treatment strategy that can be tailored based on indi-
vidual circumstances, clinician and patient preferences, and drug
tolerability. With each strategy, clinicians should regularly assess
BP, encourage evidence-based lifestyle and adherence interven-
tions, and adjust treatment until goal BP is attained and main-
tained. In most cases, adjusting treatment means intensifying
therapy by increasing the drug dose or by adding additional drugs
to the regimen. To avoid unnecessary complexity in this report,
the hypertension management algorithm (Figure) does not
explicitly define all potential drug treatment strategies.
Finally, panel members point out that inspecific situations, one
antihypertensive drug may be replaced with another if it is per-
ceived not to be effective or if there are adverse effects.
Limitations
This evidence-based guideline for the management of high BP in
adults is not a comprehensive guideline and is limited in scope be-
causeof thefocusedevidencereviewtoaddress the3specificques-
tions (Table 1). Clinicians often provide care for patients with nu-
merous comorbidities or other important issues related to
hypertension, but the decision was made to focus on 3 questions
considered to be relevant to most physicians and patients. Treat-
ment adherence and medication costs were thought to be beyond
the scope of this review, but the panel acknowledges the impor-
tance of both issues.
Theevidencereviewdidnot includeobservational studies, sys-
tematic reviews, or meta-analyses, and the panel did not conduct
its ownmeta-analysis basedonprespecifiedinclusioncriteria. Thus,
information fromthese types of studies was not incorporated into
the evidence statements or recommendations. Although this may
be considereda limitation, the panel decidedtofocus only onRCTs
because they represent the best scientific evidence and because
therewereasubstantial number of studies that includedlargenum-
bers of patients and met our inclusion criteria. Randomized con-
trolled trials that included participants with normal BP were ex-
cluded from our formal analysis. In cases in which high-quality
evidencewas not availableor theevidencewas weakor absent, the
panel reliedonfair-qualityevidence, panel members knowledgeof
thepublishedliteraturebeyondtheRCTs reviewed, andpersonal ex-
perience to make recommendations. The duration of the guideline
development process followingcompletionof thesystematicsearch
may have caused the panel to miss studies published after our lit-
erature review. However, a bridge search was performed through
August 2013, and the panel found no additional studies that would
have changed the recommendations.
Many of the reviewed studies were conducted when the over-
all risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality was substantially
higher than it is today; therefore, effect sizes may have been over-
estimated. Further, RCTs that enrolled prehypertensive or nonhy-
pertensiveindividuals wereexcluded. Thus, our recommendations
do not apply to those without hypertension. In many studies fo-
cusedonDBP, participants alsohadelevatedSBPsoit was not pos-
sibletodeterminewhether thebenefit observedinthosetrials arose
fromlowering DBP, SBP, or both. Inaddition, the ability tocompare
studiesfromdifferent timeperiodswaslimitedbydifferencesinclini-
cal trial design and analytic techniques.
While physicians use cost, adherence, andoftenobservational
data to make treatment decisions, medical interventions should
whenever possiblebebasedfirst andforemost ongoodsciencedem-
onstratingbenefits topatients. Randomizedcontrolledtrials arethe
gold standard for this assessment and thus were the basis for pro-
vidingtheevidencefor our clinical recommendations. Althoughad-
verse effects and harms of antihypertensive treatment docu-
mented in the RCTs were considered when the panel made its
decisions, the review was not designed to determine whether
therapy-associated adverse effects and harms resulted in signifi-
cant changes inimportant healthoutcomes. Inaddition, this guide-
Table 5. Strategies to Dose Antihypertensive Drugs
a
Strategy Description Details
A Start one drug, titrate to maximum
dose, and then add a second drug
If goal BP is not achieved with the initial drug, titrate the dose of the initial drug up to the maximum
recommended dose to achieve goal BP
If goal BP is not achieved with the use of one drug despite titration to the maximum recommended
dose, add a second drug from the list (thiazide-type diuretic, CCB, ACEI, or ARB) and titrate up to the
maximum recommended dose of the second drug to achieve goal BP
If goal BP is not achieved with 2 drugs, select a third drug from the list (thiazide-type diuretic, CCB,
ACEI, or ARB), avoiding the combined use of ACEI and ARB. Titrate the third drug up to the maximum
B Start one drug and then add a second
drug before achieving maximum dose
of the initial drug
Start with one drug then add a second drug before achieving the maximum recommended dose of the
initial drug, then titrate both drugs up to the maximum recommended doses of both to achieve goal BP
If goal BP is not achieved with 2 drugs, select a third drug from the list (thiazide-type diuretic, CCB,
C Begin with 2 drugs at the same time,
either as 2 separate pills or as a single
pill combination
Initiate therapy with 2 drugs simultaneously, either as 2 separate drugs or as a single pill combination.
Some committee members recommend starting therapy with 2 drugs when SBP is >160 mm Hg
and/or DBP is >100 mm Hg, or if SBP is >20 mm Hg above goal and/or DBP is >10 mm Hg above goal. If
goal BP is not achieved with 2 drugs, select a third drug from the list (thiazide-type diuretic, CCB,
recommended dose.
Abbreviations: ACEI, angiotensin-converting enzyme; ARB, angiotensin
receptor blocker; BP, blood pressure; CCB, calciumchannel blocker; DBP,
diastolic blood pressure; SBP, systolic blood pressure.
a
This tableis not meant toexcludeother agents withintheclasses of antihyperten-
sivemedications that havebeenrecommendedbut reflects thoseagents anddos-
ingusedinrandomizedcontrolledtrials that demonstratedimprovedoutcomes.
linewas not endorsedbyanyfederal agencyor professional society
prior topublicationandthusisadeparturefrompreviousJNCreports.
Thepanel anticipates that anobjectiveassessment of this report fol-
lowing publication will allowopen dialogue among endorsing enti-
tiesandencouragecontinuedattentiontorigorousmethodsinguide-
line development, thus raising the standard for future guidelines.
Discussion
The recommendations based on RCT evidence in this guideline dif-
fer from recommendations in other currently used guidelines sup-
portedby expert consensus (Table6). For example, JNC7 andother
guidelinesrecommendedtreatment tolower BPgoalsinpatientswith
diabetes and CKD based on observational studies.
12
Recently, sev-
eral guideline documents suchas those fromthe AmericanDiabetes
Association have raised the systolic BP goals to values that are simi-
lartothoserecommendedinthisevidence-basedguideline.
37-42
Other
guidelines such as those of the European Society of Hypertension/
EuropeanSocietyof CardiologyalsorecommendasystolicBPgoal of
lower than150mmHg, but it isnot clear at what agecutoff inthegen-
eral population this goal specifically applies.
37
This changing land-
scapeis understandablegiventhelackof clear RCTevidenceinmany
clinical situations.
History of JNC 8
The panel was originally constituted as the Eighth Joint National
Committee on the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treat-
ment of High Blood Pressure (JNC 8). In March 2008 NHLBI sent
letters inviting the co-chairs and committee members to serve on
JNC8. The charge tothe committee was as follows: The JNC8will
review and synthesize the latest available scientific evidence, up-
dateexistingclinical recommendations, andprovideguidancetobusy
primary care clinicians on the best approaches to manage and con-
trol hypertension in order to minimize patients risk for cardiovas-
cular and other complications. The committee was also asked to
identify and prioritize the most important questions for the evi-
dence review. In June 2013, NHLBI announced its decision to dis-
continue developing clinical guidelines including those in process,
insteadpartnering with selectedorganizations that woulddevelop
the guidelines.
43,44
Importantly, participation in this process re-
quired that these organizations be involved in producing the final
content of the report. The panel elected to pursue publication in-
dependentlytobringtherecommendations tothepublic inatimely
manner while maintaining the integrity of the predefined process.
This report is therefore not an NHLBI sanctioned report and does
not reflect the views of NHLBI.
Conclusions
It is important tonotethat this evidence-basedguidelinehas not re-
definedhighBP, andthepanel believes that the140/90mmHgdefi-
nition from JNC 7 remains reasonable. The relationship between
naturallyoccurringBPandriskis linear downtoverylowBP, but the
benefit of treatingtotheselower levels withantihypertensivedrugs
is not established. For all persons with hypertension, the potential
benefits of a healthy diet, weight control, and regular exercise can-
not beoveremphasized. Theselifestyletreatments havethepoten-
tial to improve BP control and even reduce medication needs. Al-
Table 6. Guideline Comparisons of Goal BP and Initial Drug Therapy for Adults With Hypertension
Guideline Population
Goal BP,
mm Hg Initial Drug Treatment Options
2014 Hypertension
guideline
General 60 y <150/90
Nonblack: thiazide-type diuretic, ACEI,
ARB, or CCB; black: thiazide-type
diuretic or CCB General <60 y <140/90
Diabetes <140/90 Thiazide-type diuretic, ACEI, ARB,
or CCB
CKD <140/90 ACEI or ARB
ESH/ESC 2013
37
General nonelderly <140/90
Diuretic, -blocker, CCB, ACEI, or ARB General elderly <80 y <150/90
Diabetes <140/85 ACEI or ARB
CKD no proteinuria <140/90
ACEI or ARB
CKD + proteinuria <130/90
CHEP 2013
38
General <80 y <140/90
Thiazide, -blocker (age <60y), ACEI
(nonblack), or ARB
Diabetes <130/80 ACEI or ARB with additional CVD risk
ACEI, ARB, thiazide, or DHPCCB without
additional CVD risk
CKD <140/90 ACEI or ARB
ADA 2013
39
Diabetes <140/80 ACEI or ARB
KDIGO 2012
40
CKD no proteinuria 140/90
ACEI or ARB
CKD + proteinuria 130/80
NICE 2011
41
General <80 y <140/90 <55 y: ACEI or ARB
General 80 y <150/90 55 y or black: CCB
ISHIB 2010
42
Black, lower risk <135/85
Diuretic or CCB
Target organ damage
or CVD risk
<130/80
Abbreviations: ADA, American
Diabetes Association; ACEI,
angiotensin-converting enzyme
inhibitor; ARB, angiotensin receptor
blocker; CCB, calciumchannel
blocker; CHEP, Canadian
Hypertension Education Program;
CKD, chronic kidney disease; CVD,
cardiovascular disease; DHPCCB,
dihydropyridine calciumchannel
blocker; ESC, European Society of
Cardiology; ESH, European Society of
Hypertension; ISHIB, International
Society for Hypertension in Blacks;
JNC, Joint National Committee;
KDIGO, Kidney Disease: Improving
Global Outcome; NICE, National
Institute for Health and Clinical
Excellence.
though the authors of this hypertension guideline did not conduct
anevidencereviewof lifestyletreatments inpatients takingandnot
takingantihypertensivemedication, wesupport therecommenda-
tions of the 2013 Lifestyle Work Group.
45
Therecommendations fromthis evidence-basedguidelinefrom
panel members appointed to the Eighth Joint National Committee
(JNC8) offer clinicians ananalysis of what is knownandnot known
about BP treatment thresholds, goals, and drug treatment strate-
gies to achieve those goals based on evidence from RCTs. How-
ever, these recommendations are not a substitute for clinical judg-
ment, and decisions about care must carefully consider and
incorporatetheclinical characteristics andcircumstances of eachin-
dividual patient. We hope that the algorithm will facilitate imple-
mentationandbeuseful tobusyclinicians. Thestrongevidencebase
of this report should informquality measures for the treatment of
patients with hypertension.
ARTICLE INFORMATION
Published Online: December 18, 2013.
doi:10.1001/jama.2013.284427.
Author Affiliations: University of Iowa, Iowa City
(James, Carter); University of Alabama at
BirminghamSchool of Medicine (Oparil); Memphis
Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the University
of Tennessee, Memphis (Cushman); Johns Hopkins
University School of Nursing, Baltimore, Maryland
(Dennison-Himmelfarb); Kaiser Permanente,
Anaheim, California (Handler); Medical University of
South Carolina, Charleston (Lackland); University of
Missouri, Columbia (LeFevre); Denver Health and
Hospital Authority and the University of Colorado
School of Medicine, Denver (MacKenzie); NewYork
University School of Medicine, NewYork, NewYork
(Ogedegbe); University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill (Smith); Duke University, Durham, North
Carolina (Svetkey); Mayo Clinic College of Medicine,
Rochester, Minnesota (Taler); University of
Pennsylvania, Philadelphia (Townsend); Case
Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
(Wright); National Institute of Diabetes and
Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Bethesda, Maryland
(Narva); at the time of the project, National Heart,
Lung, and Blood Institute, Bethesda, Maryland
(Ortiz); currently with ProVation Medical, Wolters
Kluwer Health, Minneapolis, Minnesota (Ortiz).
Author Contributions: Drs James and Oparil had
full access to all of the data in the study and take
responsibility for the integrity of the data and the
accuracy of the data analysis.
Study concept and design, acquisition of data,
analysis and interpretation of data, drafting of the
manuscript, critical revision of the manuscript for
important intellectual content, administrative,
technical, and material support, and study
supervision: All authors.
Conflict of Interest Disclosures: All authors have
completed and submitted the ICMJE Formfor
Disclosure of Potential Conflicts of Interest. Dr
Oparil reports individual and institutional payment
related to board membership fromBayer, Daiichi
Sankyo, Novartis, Medtronic, and Takeda; individual
consulting fees fromBackbeat, Bayer,
Boehringer-Ingelheim, Bristol Myers-Squibb, Daiichi
Sankyo, Eli Lilly, Medtronic, Merck, Pfizer, and
Takeda; receipt of institutional grant funding from
AstraZeneca, Daiichi Sankyo, Eisai Inc, Gilead,
Medtronic, Merck, Novartis, Takeda Global
Research and Development Inc; individual payment
for lectures fromDaiichi Sankyo, Merck, Novartis,
and Pfizer; individual and institutional payment for
development of educational presentations from
ASH/AHSR (Daiichi Sankyo); and individual and
institutional payment fromAmarin Pharma Inc,
Daiichi Sankyo, and LipoScience Inc for educational
grant(s) for the Annual UAB Vascular Biology &
Hypertension Symposium. Dr Cushman reports
receipt of institutional grant support fromMerck,
Lilly, and Novartis; and consulting fees from
Novartis, Sciele Pharmaceuticals, Takeda,
sanofi-aventis, Gilead, Calpis, Pharmacopeia,
Theravance, Daiichi-Sankyo, Noven, AstraZeneca
Spain, Merck, Omron, and Janssen. Dr Townsend
reports board membership with Medtronic,
consultancy for Janssen, GlaxoSmithKline, and
Merck, and royalties/educational-related payments
fromMerck, UpToDate, and Medscape. Dr Wright
reports receipt of consulting fees fromMedtronic,
CVRx, Takeda, Daiichi-Sankyo, Pfizer, Novartis, and
Take Care Health. The other authors report no
disclosures.
Funding/Support: The evidence reviewfor this
project was funded by the National Heart, Lung,
and Blood Institute (NHLBI).
Role of the Sponsor: The design and conduct of
the study; collection, management, analysis, and
interpretation of the data; preparation, review, and
approval of the manuscript; and decision to submit
the manuscript for publication are the
responsibilities of the authors alone and
independent of NHLBI.
Disclaimer: The views expressed do not represent
those of the NHLBI, the National Institute of
Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, the
National Institutes of Health, or the federal
government.
Additional Contributions: We thank Cory V. Evans,
MPP, who at the time of the project was a senior
research analyst and contract lead for JNC 8 with
Leidos (formerly Science Applications International
Corporation) and Linda J. Lux, MPA, RTI
International, for their support. We also thank
Lawrence J. Fine, MD, DrPH, NHLBI, for his work
with the panel. Those named here were
compensated in their roles as consultants on the
project.
Correction: This article was corrected for the
description of reserpine in Recommendation 6,
addition of a footnote to Table 5, and text in the
Discussion on January 21, 2014.
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2014 Evidence-Based Guideline for the Management

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