Why the study?
The actual contribution of antihypertensive drug therapy to reducing blood pressure at the population level was largely unknown.
Does the use of antihypertensive medication reduce arterial blood pressure at the population level?
Population
362,275 individuals aged 16 and older in the United States, England, and Scotland
Comparison
Use of antihypertensive medications vs secular trends over time
Design
Pooled cross-sectional analysis
Key result
Antihypertensive medication use contributed to an 8.68 mmHg reduction in systolic blood pressure between 1992 and 2019, though secular trends accounted for a larger 16.24 mmHg decrease.
Authors
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Secular trends drove larger population systolic BP declines than antihypertensives; hypothesis-generating for causal effects in cross-sectional data.
Cross-Sectional (n=362,275)
Yes
Does the use of antihypertensive medication reduce arterial blood pressure at the population level?
Effect estimate: -8.68 mmHg (95% CI -9.03 to -8.33)
Population-level reductions in blood pressure over the past three decades appear to be driven more by broad secular trends than by the increased use of antihypertensive medications.
Diego Montaño (2023) conducted a cross-sectional in Arterial blood pressure (n=362,275). Antihypertensive medications (monotherapy or combined therapy) vs. No medication was evaluated on Potential public health impact of combined antihypertensive medications on systolic blood pressure (1992-2019) (-8.68 mmHg, 95% CI -9.03 to -8.33). Antihypertensive medication use contributed to an 8.68 mmHg reduction in systolic blood pressure between 1992 and 2019, though secular trends accounted for a larger 16.24 mmHg decrease.