Pausing blood pressure meds on day of surgery benefits older adults
Pausing a patient's usual dose of blood pressure medication on the day of surgery reduces the rate of very low blood pressure requiring treatment during the operation compared with taking their medication as normal, finds a trial of older adults, published by The BMJ. The researchers say this simple strategy "provides high-certainty evidence supporting omission of the morning dose in this…
A study published in The BMJ reveals that pausing blood pressure medication on the day of surgery can lower the risk of dangerous low blood pressure during operations for older adults. A trial involving 2,012 patients aged 60 to 80 years who took ACE or ARB drugs for an average of 10 years found that those who skipped their usual dose on surgery day had a 31.2% rate of low blood pressure during the procedure, compared to 45.5% among those who continued their medication.
The risk of needing a vasopressor to raise blood pressure was also lower in the nonmedicated group. While the study does not apply to very high-risk surgeries or different countries, the researchers conclude that discontinuing ACE or ARB drugs before noncardiac surgery should be considered when intraoperative hypotension is a concern.
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