Hypertension: Predicting treatment response
DOI: 10.1038/ajh.2010.98
DOI: 10.1038/ajh.2010.105
DOI: 10.1038/ajh.2010.114
DOI: 10.1038/ajh.2010.135
DOI: 10.1038/ajh.2010.139
Individuals who are treated for high blood pressure can have differing responses to treatments, and these responses could be predicted based on easily identifiable characteristics. Three papers published this week in American Journal of Hypertension (AJH), suggest that a mismatch between drug selection and patient characteristics may contribute to treatment failure and that a simple, inexpensive blood test, can improve the likelihood that optimal treatment will be selected for each patient.
Hypertension is an incurable condition that requires life long treatment to reduce the risk of strokes and heart attacks—the leading causes of death throughout the world. Almost one billion people are affected by hypertension globally. Although current treatment guidelines assume that all drugs are equally effective for all patients, only about one-half of all hypertensive individuals have their blood pressure controlled.
Stephen T. Turner and colleagues found that measuring the plasma activity of renin—a hormone produced by the kidney that regulates blood pressure—is an effective method of selecting antihypertensive medication for either single drug therapy or adding a second drug when goal blood pressure levels are not achieved by treatment with a single-drug. Michael H. Alderman and colleagues found that systolic blood pressure increased during antihypertensive drug treatment in some patients; this unwanted response was more likely to occur when anti-renin drug treatment was used in patients with low rennin levels. In another study, Ajay K. Gupta and colleagues reported that blood pressure response to an anti-renin drug was less effective for African-Americans than for Caucasian patients.
In accompanying editorials, Morris J. Brown and Curt D. Furberg, separately suggest that guidelines for the treatment of hypertension need to be brought up to date. The potential human and economic benefit gained from this medical advance would be significant.
Author contacts:
Stephen T. Turner (Mayo Clinic and Foundation, Rochester, MN, USA)
Email: [email protected]
Michael H. Alderman (Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, USA)
Tel: +1 718 430 2281
E-mail: [email protected]
Ajay K Gupta (Imperial College London, UK)
Tel: +44 20 7594 3437
E-mail: [email protected]
Morris J. Brown, (University of Cambridge, UK)
Tel: Phone: +44 1223 336737
E-mail: [email protected]
Curt D. Furberg (Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA)
Tel: +1 336 716 3730
E-mail: [email protected]
PRESS CONTACTS
For media inquiries relating to embargo policy for the American Journal of Hypertension:
Neda Afsarmanesh (Nature New York)
Tel: +1 212 726 9231
E-mail: [email protected]
Ruth Francis (Nature London)
Tel: +44 20 7843 4562
E-mail: [email protected]
For media inquiries relating to the journal:
Yvonne P. Raiford (American Journal of Hypertension, Bronx, NY, USA)
Tel: +1 718 430 3600
E-mail: [email protected]
About Nature Publishing Group (NPG):
Nature Publishing Group (NPG) is a publisher of high impact scientific and medical information in print and online. NPG publishes journals, online databases and services across the life, physical, chemical and applied sciences and clinical medicine.
Focusing on the needs of scientists, Nature (founded in 1869) is the leading weekly, international scientific journal. In addition, for this audience, NPG publishes a range of Nature research journals and Nature Reviews journals, plus a range of prestigious academic journals including society-owned publications. Online, nature.com provides over 5 million visitors per month with access to NPG
publications and online databases and services, including Nature News and NatureJobs plus access to Nature Network and Nature Education’s Scitable.com.
Scientific American is at the heart of NPG’s newly-formed consumer media division, meeting the needs of the general public. Founded in 1845, Scientific American is the oldest continuously published magazine in the US and the leading authoritative publication for science in the general media. Together with scientificamerican.com and 15 local language editions around the world it reaches over 3 million consumers and scientists. Other titles include Scientific American Mind and Spektrum der Wissenschaft in Germany.
Throughout all its businesses NPG is dedicated to serving the scientific and medical communities and the wider scientifically interested general public. Part of Macmillan Publishers Limited, NPG is a global company with principal offices in London, New York and Tokyo, and offices in cities worldwide including Boston, Buenos Aires, Delhi, Hong Kong, Madrid, Barcelona, Munich, Heidelberg, Basingstoke, Melbourne, Paris, San Francisco, Seoul and Washington DC. For more information, please go to www.nature.com.
