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Cardiovascular risk in obese hypertensive patients taking various antihypertensive drugs

Christoph Schindler1, Peter Bramlage, Martin Thoenes

  • 1Institute of Clinical Pharmacology, Technical University, Dresden, Germany. christoph.schindler@tu-dresden.de

Clinical Drug Investigation
|September 7, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Obese patients with hypertension face significantly higher fatal cardiovascular risks, particularly older men. Certain antihypertensive drugs showed associations with varying risk levels, though causality requires further study.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • Obesity Research
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Obesity and hypertension are common comorbidities, significantly increasing cardiovascular (CV) risk.
  • Understanding risk factor profiles is crucial for managing CV events in these patients.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze risk factor profiles in primary care patients with obesity and hypertension.
  • To estimate the fatal CV risk in this population, considering antihypertensive drug use.

Main Methods:

  • Post-hoc analysis of a large observational study (72,479 hypertensive patients in Germany).
  • Utilized the SCORE algorithm for 10-year fatal CV risk assessment.
  • Included patients who were overweight or obese (92.3%).

Main Results:

  • 68% of patients had comorbidities beyond obesity and hypertension.
  • Fatal CV risk ranged from 1.7% (youngest normal weight) to 26% (oldest obese).
  • Risk increased with age and was higher in men; associations noted between specific antihypertensive drug classes and risk levels.

Conclusions:

  • Fatal CV risk is substantially elevated in obese patients, especially older men.
  • Associations exist between certain antihypertensive drugs, metabolic markers, and CV risk, but causality is undetermined.
Abstract

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