Aggressive Treatment of Hypertension Preferable, Study Finds
Bloomberg News
June 12, 1998, 12:41 a.m. PT
Aggressive Treatment of Hypertension Preferable, Study Finds
London, June 12 (Bloomberg) -- Treating hypertension
aggressively with drugs and aspirin can cut the risk of heart
attack and stroke, a new study of nearly 19,000 patients showed.
The study, published in the medical journal The Lancet,
found that the ''optimum'' level of hypertension or blood
pressure to minimize the risk of heart problems is lower than
previously believed. The finding is likely to prompt doctors to
prescribe stronger treatment regimes for the condition, analysts
said.
Hypertension, a condition characterized by relatively high
average blood pressure over sustained periods, affects about a
quarter of the U.S. population in varying degrees. Typically
doctors prescribe lifestyle changes, such as smoking cessation,
improved diets and exercise, as a treatment. In serious cases,
doctors prescribe a range of hypertension drugs, usage of which
could rise as the study's conclusions gain acceptance, according
to Genghis Lloyd-Harris, analyst with Credit Suisse First Boston.
''In the short term, there will definitely be an increase in
drug prescribing for hypertensives,'' said Lloyd-Harris.
''Doctors will want more aggressive control of the
hypertension.''
Major makers of cardiovascular drugs include Merck & Co.,
Bayer AG, Pfizer Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., Hoechst AG,
Novartis AG and Zeneca Group Plc.
Astra Sponsors Study
The study, which was sponsored by Swedish drugmaker Astra
AB, a maker of hypertension drugs, randomly assigned three blood
pressure level goals to three groups of about 6,200 hypertension
patients each from 26 countries. The study was conducted by Prof.
Lennart Hansson, head of clinical hypertension research at
Sweden's University of Uppsala.
The three goals were to have diastolic blood pressure levels
of 90, 85 and 80. Normal diastolic blood pressure - a measure of
blood pressure when the heart muscle is relaxed - is usually
between 60 to 85 in most people.
The study found that diastolic blood pressure that is
lowered to 82.5 is the optimal level for maintaining
cardiovascular health. Previously, a diastolic blood pressure
level of 90 was considered standard.
Blood pressure is typically measured by two variables --
systolic pressure which measures blood pressure when the heart is
contracted and diastolic pressure when the heart muscle is
relaxed -- expressed as a ratio.
The study, called Hypertension Optimal Treatment (HOT), used
a drug called felodipine to lower blood pressure in patients, as
well as other drugs if that failed to lower blood pressure to the
target level. Aspirin was also used in some patients, and found
to cut the risk of major cardiovascular incidents by 15 percent,
the study results showed.
Felodipine is one of a commonly used class of blood
pressuring lowering drugs called calcium channel blockers. It is
Astra's fourth-biggest selling drug under the brand name Plendil,
generating 2.24 million kronor ($280 million) in 1997 sales.
''HOT provides strong evidence that intensive therapy is
beneficial,'' said Prof. Norman Kaplan, a cardiologist with the
University of Texas' Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, in an
accompanying Lancet commentary.
--Dane Hamilton in the London newsroom (44-171) 330-7727/pnt |
