In many patients, these effects could reflect imminent heart failure.27 In contrast, the faster-walking subcohort had longer-than-average life expectancy and

may have been exposed to the pathologic effects of sustained hypertension, such as death. As gait speed decreases with age in a group of very old people, the association between hypertension and mortality may cease to exist merely in comparison with the overall rising mortality rate. find more The present population-based study involved home visitation of very old people, enabling participation of the frailest individuals and care facility residents. Standardized face-to-face interviews, in combination with data from medical records, provided extensive information on comorbidities that was incorporated in the fully adjusted regression model. The division of BP values into 4 or 5 categories allowed for interpretation of nonlinear associations. Despite these stengths, the present study has some limitations. Although mortality

data were reliable, information on cause of death was not collected. The study was representative of people in the studied geographic Selleck Dabrafenib area aged 85, 90, and 95 years or older, and its results may not apply to a general population of very old individuals. Furthermore, BP was measured while participants were supine, which impedes comparison with other studies. Because of the high prevalence of orthostatic hypotension in very old people,28 and 29 the measurement of BP with participants in a seated position might have produced a wider distribution of BP values and lower mean values. Each participant’s BP was measured only once during a home visit, which may limit the reliability of this measurement. However, data quality

seemed to be acceptable for group-level comparison, as BP was measured using a calibrated manual sphygmomanometer according to a standardized procedure. Finally, the statistical power of some subcohort analyses may have been limited. In conclusion, the association of BP with mortality differed in gait speed subcohorts. High systolic and diastolic BP seem to be independently very associated with increased mortality risk among very old people with gait speeds of 0.5 m/s or faster. In slower-walking and habitually nonwalking individuals, BP does not appear to be independently associated with mortality. Low systolic and diastolic BP may be markers of increased mortality risk in very old people with lower gait speed, possibly secondary to failing health. Future studies should aim to investigate the risks of other complications of hypertension in very old people, with respect to gait speed. The gait speed threshold of 0.5 m/s may be clinically useful for the distinction of very old people with and without increased mortality risk due to elevated systolic and diastolic BP.