National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
(NHLBI)
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov
Embargoed for Release:
Monday, Nov. 9, 2015 at 2:00 pm ET
Contact: NHLBI Engagement and Media Relations Branch,
301-496-4236
nhlbi_news@nhlbi.nih.gov
Data analysis and publication of landmark NIH blood pressure study confirm that lower
blood pressure target can reduce cardiovascular disease, deaths
NIH-supported researchers are reporting more details on a landmark study that announced
preliminary findings in September showing a lower blood pressure target can save lives and
reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease in a group of non-diabetic adults 50 years and older
with high blood pressure. Results of the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT)
appear in the current online issue of the New England Journal of Medicine and were discussed
today at the American Heart Association 2015 Scientific Sessions in Orlando.
The study confirms that, in adults 50 years and older with high blood pressure, targeting a
systolic blood pressure of less than 120 millimeters of mercury (mm Hg) reduced rates of
cardiovascular events, such as heart attack and heart failure, as well as stroke, by 25 percent.
Additionally, this target reduced the risk of death by 27 percent—as compared to a target
systolic pressure of 140 mm Hg.
“SPRINT is part of a proud legacy of NIH-funded clinical trials that will change clinical practice
and save lives for decades to come. These results reinforce the compelling public health
importance of enhancing the awareness, treatment and control of hypertension in this country
and around the world,” said Gary H. Gibbons, M.D., director of the National Heart, Lung, and
Blood Institute (NHLBI), the primary sponsor of SPRINT.
The SPRINT study, which began in the fall of 2009, included more than 9,300 participants age
50 and older, recruited from about 100 medical centers and clinical practices throughout the
United States and Puerto Rico. About 36 percent of participants were women, 58 percent were
white, 30 percent were African-American, and 11 percent were Hispanic. The SPRINT study did
not include patients with diabetes, prior stroke, or polycystic kidney disease, as other NIH trials
were studying those particular populations. Approximately 28 percent were 75 or older and 28
percent had chronic kidney disease. The study tested a strategy of using blood pressure
medications to achieve the targeted goals of less than 120 mm Hg (intensive treatment group)
versus 140 mm Hg (standard treatment group). The NIH stopped the blood pressure
intervention in August—a year earlier than planned—after it became apparent that this more
intensive intervention was beneficial.
“When the benefits of the stronger intervention became apparent in SPRINT, we made a
commitment to rapid public health communication and peer-reviewed publication of the study
results,” Dr. Gibbons said. “We are pleased to present the details of the study’s potentially
lifesaving findings at this time.”
In their report, investigators provided detailed data showing that both cardiovascular deaths and
overall deaths were lower in the intensive treatment group.
Certain types of serious consequences were more common in the intensive group, including low
blood pressure, fainting, electrolyte abnormalities, and acute kidney damage. However, other
serious adverse events associated with lower blood pressure, such as slow heart rate and falls
with injuries, did not increase in the intensive group. In patients with chronic kidney disease,
there was no difference in the rate of serious decline in kidney function between the two blood
pressure goal groups.
“The benefits of more intensive blood pressure lowering exceeded the potential for harm,
regardless of gender or race/ethnicity,” said study co-author Paul Whelton, M.D., of Tulane
University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine in New Orleans, Louisiana. He is chair
of the SPRINT Steering Committee.
In addition to its primary cardiovascular outcome, the study continues to examine kidney
disease, cognitive function, and dementia among the SPRINT participants; however, these
results are not yet available as additional information will be collected and analyzed over the
next year.
“Although the study provides strong evidence that a lower blood pressure target saves lives,
patients and their health care providers may want to wait to see how guideline groups
incorporate this study and other scientific reports into any future hypertension guidelines. In the
meantime, patients should talk to their health care providers to determine whether this lower
goal is best for their individual care,” said study co-author Lawrence Fine, M.D., Chief, Clinical
Applications and Prevention Branch at NHLBI.
“It’s also important to remember that healthy lifestyle changes can make a difference in
controlling high blood pressure,” Dr. Fine added. He emphasized the importance of following a
healthy diet, being physically active, maintaining a healthy weight, as well as learning to check
your blood pressure.
In addition to primary sponsorship by the NHLBI, SPRINT is co-sponsored by the NIH’s National
Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, the National Institute of Neurological
Disorders and Stroke, and the National Institute on Aging.
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Part of the National Institutes of Health, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
plans, conducts, and supports research related to the causes, prevention, diagnosis, and
treatment of heart, blood vessel, lung, and blood diseases; and sleep disorders. The Institute
also administers national health education campaigns on women and heart disease, healthy
weight for children, and other topics. NHLBI press releases and other materials are available
online at http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov.
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includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical,
and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for
both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit
www.nih.gov.
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