There's no cure as such for essential hypertension, but following a healthy lifestyle can be enough to bring blood pressure down to a normal level. This is one reason why drug treatment may not be offered for healthy individuals with only mild hypertension (above 140/90 mmHg but below 160/100 mmHg).
Medication is used if lifestyle changes alone fail to lower blood pressure sufficiently. It's generally recommend that drug treatment is offered to those with:
Blood pressure above 160/100 mmHg
Isolated systolic hypertension of more than 160 mmHg
Blood pressure of more than 140/90 mmHg (ie, mild hypertension) but who also have cardiovascular disease or significant risk of developing cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or damage to the heart, kidney or eyes as a result of high blood pressure
Current UK guidelines also recommend that blood pressure levels need to be even lower for certain people and say treatment should aim to lower blood pressure to below 130/80 if a person has:
A complication of diabetes, especially kidney problems
Had a serious cardiovascular event such as a heart attack, TIA or stroke
Has certain chronic kidney diseases
All medicines can have side effects and sometimes it’s necessary to try different drugs if initial treatments cause problems.
