There Are So Many Different Blood Pressure Pills. How Does My Doctor Decide Which One To Prescribe?

Dr. Daniel Jones answers the question: 'How Are Blood Pressure Meds Prescribed?'

By
Daniel W. Jones, M.D., President, American Heart Association; Vice Chancellor For Health Affairs & Dean, School Of Medicine, University Of Mississippi Medical Center
May 5, 2008, 3:34 PM ET
1 min read

— -- Question: There Are So Many Different Blood Pressure Pills, How Does My Doctor Decide Which One To Prescribe?

Answer: Doctors these days have lots of help making decisions. After all that training they get, they have to keep up with today's current science. And these are consolidated into what we call 'guidelines.'

And so, in making a decision about what's the best treatment for you, your health professional would use the guidelines, sometimes produced by the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association, sometimes from the National Institutes of Health.

But they're good guidelines that give your own health professional good guidance about today's best therapy based on today's best science to give you the best health care that you can receive. It's a complicated process, but there's lots of help for you and for your health professional as they make decisions about your health care.

Next: I Have Been Told That Beta-Blockers Increase My Risk Of Developing Diabetes. Is This True?

Previous: What Blood Pressure Targets Should I Aim For After A Heart Attack?