The Joint National Committee on Prevention,Detection, Evaluation, and Treatment of High Blood Pressure(JNC-7) recommends aggressive blood pressure lowering to prevent cardiovascular outcomes (Chobanian et al. JAMA 2003; 289: 2560-2572; free full text at http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/289/19/2560?ijkey=c099fcb433c2980de606feca9dfb451112a828ed). In its classification scheme, JNC-7 regards BP < 120/80 to be normotensive, and systolic BP 120-139 mmHg or diastolic BP 80-89 mmHg to be pre-hypertensive. The increasing risk of cardiovascular events is considered to be continuous above 115/75 mmHg.