Blood Pressure Control and Risk of Stroke

Abstract

Background and Purpose— Adequate control of blood pressure (BP) is a cornerstone in stroke prevention. This study explored the risk of stroke in relation to the quality of BP control in a population-based cohort and whether control of hypertension was related to background characteristics of patients. Methods— A total of 27 936 subjects (10 953 men and 16 983 women), 45 to 73 years old, living in Malmö, Sweden participated in the study. Incidence of stroke was followed-up for a mean period of 6 years. Controlled BP was defined as BP <140/90 mm Hg in subjects with pharmacological treatment for hypertension. Results— In the whole cohort, 16 648 subjects (60%) had hypertension (BP ≥140/90 mm Hg) and 23% of them received treatment. Among treated hypertensives, 88.2% had BP levels ≥140/90 mm Hg and 49.5% had BP levels ≥160/100 mm Hg. During the follow-up, 137 strokes occurred among treated hypertensive subjects. The crude incidence of stroke was 289/100 000 person-year in controlled hypertensive subjects and ...