Long-term Veterans Health Administration (VA) nursing home residents who started new medications to treat high blood pressure were more than twice as likely to experience a fracture than those who did not, according to a cohort study involving more than 29 600 VA participants, almost all male, aged 65 years or older.

Residents initiating antihypertensives also had an 80% increased risk of a fall that required an emergency department or hospital visit and a 69% increased risk of syncope. Moreover, antihypertensives were associated with a greater risk of fractures among people with dementia, as well as among those with higher baseline blood pressure or who hadn’t previously used antihypertensive medications.