By Dennis Thompson HealthDay ReporterTHURSDAY, Nov. 12, 2026 (HealthDay News) — It’s vital to lower blood pressure after a stroke, so the survivor doesn’t suffer another as they recover.

And it appears this safety measure can be achieved on the cheap, a new study says.

An inexpensive diuretic drug helped stroke survivors reach their recommended blood pressure nearly twice as often as others receiving usual post-stroke care, researchers reported at a recent meeting of the American Heart Association (AHA) in Chicago.

“Lowering blood pressure is the most important step in preventing another stroke, yet many survivors struggle to reach recommended blood pressure targets after a stroke,” said co-lead researcher Dr. Jordana Cohen, an associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania.

“We were surprised to see that blood pressure dropped twice as much as we expected,” Cohen said in a news release.

Nearly 1 in 4 stroke survivors will have another stroke, but up to 80% of strokes can be prevented, researchers said in background notes.

Spironolactone lowers blood pressure by blocking aldosterone, a hormone that signals the kidneys to hold on to salt and water, researchers said. As a result, people urinate more often, reducing the amount of fluid in their bodies. A diuretic like this might be referred to as a “water pill.”

For the new study, researchers recruited 160 adults with an average age of 63 who’d survived a stroke across five U.S. hospitals. Half had suffered a bleeding stroke and the rest, a stroke caused by a blood clot.

Researchers randomly assigned half of the patients to take spironolactone on top of their normal post-stroke care.

Within three months, those taking spironolactone had systolic blood pressure that was nearly 8 points lower — 126 mm Hg versus 133 mm Hg for standard care, researchers found. Systolic blood pressure is the top number on a BP reading, and represents pressure inside blood vessels during a heartbeat.

About 52% of people taking the diuretic had reached their recommended blood pressure goal of less than 130/80, compared with 30% of people in the standard care group.

After six months, spironolactone patients still had systolic blood pressure about 7 points lower than the standard care group.

“When spironolactone was added to post-stroke care, we saw a meaningful drop in blood pressure that may lower the risk of future strokes and heart attacks,” Cohen said.

Rates of serious side effects requiring hospitalization were similar between both groups — 15% among those taking spironolactone and 16% among those taking standard post-stroke drugs.

“We hope these findings encourage healthcare professionals to consider adding spironolactone sooner,” Cohen added.

Researchers presented their findings Saturday at the AHA meeting.

Findings presented at medical meetings should be considered preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.

SOURCE: American Heart Association, news release, Nov. 7, 2026

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