Management of Hypertension in Patients with Diabetes

Management of HTN in diabetes patients is critical to preventing complications of diabetes and increased mortality. The ADA and other respected guidelines recommend a multi-pronged approach to screening and initiating treatment, highlighting lifestyle modification and pharmacologic therapy. The target BP for most patients with diabetes is 130/80, and maintaining this target decreases the risk for stroke, cardiovascular events, and end-organ damage. Critical care nurses should be aware that HTN in diabetes patients is typically more difficult to control compared to non-diabetes patients and may require multiple drugs to reach blood pressure targets.