Relation between blood pressure at hospital discharge after an acute coronary syndrome and long-term survival.

There are limited data on the relation between blood pressure (BP) at hospital discharge and long-term outcomes after acute coronary syndromes. In this study, of 1,053 consecutive survivors of acute coronary syndromes (mean age 64.9 +/- 12.6 years, 63% men), patients with lower diastolic BP were older, had higher Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) discharge risk scores, and had higher 2-year mortality. When modeled with GRACE score in predicting survival, only diastolic BP but not pulse pressure or systolic BP was significant in predicting survival up to 5 years. When cardioprotective medications and in-hospital revascularization were incorporated in the model, the independent predictors for survival included lower GRACE score, higher diastolic BP, and the use of beta blockers and statins. The square term of diastolic BP was also significant, indicating a J-shaped relation. Adding diastolic BP to GRACE score tended to improve the C index for predicting 6-, 12-, and 24-month survival (p = 0.14, 0.07, and 0.09, respectively). In conclusion, this study established the independent prognostic relation between diastolic BP and survival after acute coronary syndromes.