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Hypertension and COVID-19: Ongoing Controversies
Marijana Tadic1, Sahrai Saeed2, Guido Grassi3
1Department of Cardiology, University Hospital "Dr. Dragisa Misovic - Dedinje", Belgrade, Serbia.
Insights
Hypertension is a significant risk factor for severe outcomes in Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This review clarifies the impact of blood pressure, antihypertensive therapies, and hypertension diagnosis on COVID-19 patient prognosis.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Infectious Diseases
- Public Health
Background:
- Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global pandemic with significant mortality.
- Hypertension is a prevalent comorbidity associated with severe COVID-19 outcomes.
- The independent predictive value of hypertension in COVID-19 requires further clarification.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the clinical evidence on hypertension as a predictor of COVID-19 severity and outcomes.
- To examine the influence of blood pressure levels and antihypertensive treatments on COVID-19 prognosis.
- To assess the impact of both chronic and newly diagnosed hypertension in COVID-19 patients.
Main Methods:
- Systematic literature review of studies investigating hypertension and COVID-19 outcomes.
- Analysis of data concerning blood pressure, comorbidities, and antihypertensive medications.
- Synthesis of evidence on the predictive value of hypertension in diverse patient populations.
Main Results:
- Hypertension is consistently linked to increased severity and adverse outcomes in COVID-19 patients.
- Blood pressure levels and specific antihypertensive therapies (ACEI/ARB) show complex associations with COVID-19 prognosis.
- Both pre-existing and newly diagnosed hypertension are critical factors influencing COVID-19 patient management and outcomes.
Conclusions:
- Hypertension is a crucial independent risk factor for severe COVID-19.
- Understanding the interplay between hypertension, blood pressure management, and COVID-19 is vital for clinical practice.
- Further research is needed to optimize treatment strategies for hypertensive patients with COVID-19.
Abstract:
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has become a worldwide pandemic responsible for millions of deaths around the world. Hypertension has been identified as one of the most common comorbidities and risk factors for severity and adverse outcome in these patients. Recent investigations have raised the question whether hypertension represents a predictor of outcome in COVID-19 patients independently of other common comorbidities such as diabetes, obesity, other cardiovascular diseases, chronic kidney, liver, and pulmonary diseases. However, the impact of chronic and newly diagnosed hypertension in COVID-19 patients has been insufficiently investigated. The same is true for the relationship between blood pressure levels and outcomes in COVID-19 patients. It seems that the long discussion about the impact of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEI) and blockers of angiotensin I receptors (ARB) on severity and outcome in COVID-19 is approaching an end because the large number of original studies and meta-analyses discarded the initial findings about higher prevalence of ACEI/ARB use in patients with unfavorable outcomes. Nevertheless, there are many controversies in the relationship between hypertension and COVID-19. The aim of this review article is to provide a clinical overview of the currently available evidence regarding the predictive value of hypertension, the effect of blood pressure levels, the impact of previously known and newly diagnosed hypertension, and the effect of antihypertensive therapy on the severity and outcomes in COVID-19 patients.
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