High Blood Pressure
– The sooner treated with Medication the less likely of developing
Hypertension
March 14th, 2006
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Early
intervention of high blood pressure by treating with medication as well
as dietary changes can help prevent the development of hypertension
later on. Adults that showed pre-hypertensive or high normal blood
pressure (HNBP) had shown a benefit by early treatment with prescription
drugs.
Pre-hypertension is still is has its
health risks. There is an estimated double the risk of having a heart
attack or stroke compared with those that have normal blood pressure.
The research was first presented at
today’s American College of Cardiology’s 55th Annual
Scientific Session and will also be presented in the New England Journal
of Medicine. The lead researcher Stevo Julius, M.D., Professor Emeritus
of Medicine and Physiology at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor had
conducted this four year trial called TROPHY. Funding for the trial
came from AstraZeneca who are the makers of ATACAND (candesartan
cilexetil).
The trial study
was set up to determine the safety and the potential benefits of
treating patients early with prescription drugs when a persons blood
pressure was 130 – 139 mm Hg over 85-89. There were a total of 772
patients that participated in the trial. The overall average blood
pressure of the participants was 134/84.8. They were randomly assigned
either to take 16mg of candesartan or they took a placebo. The
participants had regular screenings to check for blood pressure both at
home and in a clinic setting. The participants were also educated on
non-drug related blood pressure lowering techniques such as exercise and
diet.
There was a 15.6 percent lower risk
for developing hypertension in the participants that took the
prescription drug compared to those that took only the placebo the whole
time. The researchers believe that the drug treatment helped to slow
down the blood-vessel changes that help raise blood pressure.
The official guideline for
diagnosing hypertension is that the patient has to have blood pressure
readings of 140 over 90 at three different doctor visits or the patient
has blood pressure that was 160 over 100 at any one doctor visit. The
doctor seeing the patient should look for any possible organ damage or
medical condition that would require treatment.
"Prehypertension is currently
treated by lifestyle modification, but this form of treatment has had
little effect on public health," said Stevo Julius, M.D. "It was
therefore appropriate to investigate whether treatment with blood
pressure-lowering drugs in this early phase of hypertension is feasible
and whether it would slow down the transition from "prehypertension" to
treatment-requiring hypertension."
Nicole Wilson
Best Syndication
Books on Heart Disease
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