[Female patients with arterial hypertension]

In Germany, more women than men die from cardiovascular causes. Women account for more than two thirds of the patients who die as a direct consequence of high blood pressure. Although arterial hypertension is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease, and many drugs are available for hypertension treatment, less than 30% of hypertensive patients in Germany are controlled. There is a striking age-dependent development of blood pressure values in women compared to men. Blood pressure is lower in younger women than in men, a fact that likely contributes to the reduced cardiovascular risk in younger women. Hormonal changes that occur with menopause are thought to lead to an increase in cardiovascular risk in postmenopausal women to match that of men in the same age-group. To date, women and men are treated according to the same guidelines, since large studies have established a reduction in cardiovascular endpoints as a result of hypertension treatment. The database on putative differences in the effects and side-effects, as well as the effectiveness of the various classes of antihypertensive drugs dependent on gender is limited but growing.