September 8, 2025- The American Heart Association and American College of Cardiology updated their guidelines for people with high blood pressure for the first time since 2017. The guidance expands the options for preventing and managing high blood pressure, a major risk factor for more severe health issues.
The new guideline reflects several major changes since 2017, including use of the American Heart Association’s PREVENTTM (Predicting Risk of cardiovascular disease EVENTs) risk calculator to estimate cardiovascular disease risk, according to the American Heart Association.
It also provides updated guidance on medication options, including the early treatment for high blood pressure to reduce the risk of cognitive decline and dementia; use of specific medications including the possible addition of newer therapies such as GLP-1 medications for some patients with high blood pressure and overweight or obesity, and recommendations for managing high blood pressure before, during and after pregnancy.