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What are we really achieving with long-term drug therapy?
1Department of Medicine, University of Göteborg, Ostra Hospital, Sweden.
American Journal of Hypertension
|October 1, 1988
Summary
Antihypertensive treatment effectively reduces hypertension-related mortality and morbidity, including stroke and kidney failure. However, risks in treated patients may not reach normotensive levels due to irreversible changes or treatment-related adverse effects.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Nephrology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Hypertension significantly contributes to morbidity and mortality.
- Antihypertensive treatment has demonstrated benefits in reducing cardiovascular events and organ damage.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the overall impact of antihypertensive treatment on hypertension-induced risks.
- To explore reasons why treated hypertensive patients may still exhibit elevated risks compared to normotensive individuals.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing data on antihypertensive therapy outcomes.
- Analysis of factors influencing risk reduction in treated hypertensive populations.
Main Results:
- Pharmacological lowering of arterial pressure positively affects total mortality, stroke, left ventricular failure, and renal failure.
- Benefits for coronary artery disease are less clear.
- Hypertension-induced risks in treated patients often remain higher than in normotensive subjects.
Conclusions:
- While antihypertensive therapy offers significant benefits, residual risks persist.
- Potential reasons include irreversible cardiovascular changes, adverse drug effects, and suboptimal blood pressure control.
- Overly aggressive blood pressure reduction may increase certain risks, such as coronary artery disease mortality.