Answering the unanswered questions: ongoing trials of statins and antihypertensives in type 2 diabetes.
Dyslipidaemia and hypertension contribute to an excess risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) in patients with type 2 diabetes. A number of landmark primary and secondary prevention trials have demonstrated that lipid-lowering therapy with HMG-CoA reductase inhibitors (statins), and antihypertensive therapy with angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and calcium channel blockers (CCBs), reduce CHD risk in the non-diabetic population. However, many questions remain unanswered about the use of these therapies in patients with type 2 diabetes. To address the most important of these questions, several major trials are under way that will provide more data on the benefits of lipid-lowering and antihypertensive therapy in type 2 diabetes. These include studies of atorvastatin, an established member of the statin class, with over 22 million patient-years' experience and an excellent safety profile. Similarly, the Antihypertensive and Lipid Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack Trial (ALLHAT) and the Anglo-Scandinavian Cardiac Outcomes Trial (ASCOT) will determine the efficacy of the CCB, amlodipine, in patients with concomitant type 2 diabetes and hypertension.
Scott
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Pfizer Pharmaceuticals Group, Pfizer Inc, New York, NY 10017-5755, USA.
D000959:Antihypertensive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003924:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2 / Q000188:drug therapy*; D003925:Diabetic Angiopathies / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006973:Hypertension / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000517:prevention & control
D000959:Antihypertensive Agents; D019161:Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors