Renal sympathetic denervation: early impact on ambulatory resistant hypertension

Although guidelines recommend ambulatory blood pressure (BP) monitoring (ABPM), few data are available regarding the effects of renal denervation (RDN) on 24-hour ABPM values. A total of 44 patients with mean systolic BP ≥135 mm Hg on ABPM despite adequate therapy were included. Basal systolic BP (SBP) and diastolic BP (DBP) were 154±11 mm Hg and 86±12 mm Hg, respectively. At 1 month, SBP and DBP were reduced to 146±18 mm Hg (P=.01) and 82±14 mm Hg and showed no further decrease up to 6 months. Only 55% of the patients responded to RDN (≥-5 mm Hg SBP), with a mean responder rate drop of 21/11 mm Hg. Neither the number of ablation points nor the amount of impedance drop was predictive of response. Only approximately half of patients with resistant hypertension responded to RDN. However, in these responders, a remarkable reduction of 24-hour BP occurred as early as 1 month after RDN.