Potential Impact of 2017 American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Hypertension Guideline on Contemporary Practice: A Cross-Sectional Analysis From NCDR PINNACLE Registry.

Background Clinical implications of change in the 2017 American College of Cardiology (ACC)/American Heart Association (AHA) guideline on the diagnosis and management of hypertension, compared with recommendations by 2014 expert panel and Seventh Report of the Joint National Committee on Prevention, Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure (JNC7), are not known. Methods and Results Using data from the NCDR (National Cardiovascular Data Registry) PINNACLE (Practice Innovation and Clinical Excellence) Registry (January 2013-Decemver 2016), we compared the proportion and clinical characteristics of patients seen in cardiology practices diagnosed with hypertension, recommended antihypertensive treatment, and achieving blood pressure (BP) goals per each guideline document. In addition, we evaluated the proportion of patients at the level of practices meeting BP targets defined by each guideline.

Racial Disparities in Modifiable Risk Factors and Statin Usage in Black Patients With Familial Hypercholesterolemia.

Background Black men and women are at higher risk for, and suffer greater morbidity and mortality from, atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) compared with adults of European Ancestry (EA). Black patients with familial hypercholesterolemia are at particularly high risk for ASCVD complications because of lifelong exposure to elevated levels of low-density-lipoprotein cholesterol. Methods and Results This retrospective study analyzed ASCVD prevalence and risk factors in 808 adults with heterozygous familial hypercholesterolemia from 5 US-based lipid clinics, and compared findings in Black versus EA patients.