Recommended optimal BP in the Asian population: difference from current JNC VII and ESC/ESH guidelines

Clinical practitioners and opinion leaders in Asia are yet to organise and validate criteria before reaching a consensus for optimal blood pressure. By careful analysis of available clinical trials in the region and guidelines from Europe and the USA, and then integrating these to form a consensus, an optimal blood pressure level for the Asian population is hoped to be established. This paper will: (i) compare the differences between the guidelines issued by the Japanese Society of Hypertension (JSH), the Chinese Hypertension Society (CHS), the US's Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Pressure (JNC VII), and the European Society of Cardiology and European Society of Hypertension (ESC/ESH) to find a standard suitable for the Asian population; (ii) review clinical studies that involve subjects complicated by other cardiovascular risk factors including the metabolic syndrome and their need for different blood pressure target; and while taking all these into consideration, (iii) determine appropriate targets for these types of patients.