Older age should not be a barrier to the treatment of hypertension.
Commentaries and debates at national medical meetings have fuelled the controversy about treatment of hypertension in patients aged 80 years and older. A double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial was, therefore, indicated to settle the dispute about whether antihypertensive drug therapy is efficacious or harmful in these patients. Results from HYVET (Hypertension in the Very Elderly Trial) showed that, at 2-year follow-up, antihypertensive drug therapy with indapamide, plus perindopril if needed, reduced fatal or nonfatal stroke by 30%, fatal stroke by 39%, all-cause mortality by 21%, cardiovascular death by 23%, and heart failure by 64%. These results indicate that hypertensive patients aged 80 years and older should be treated with antihypertensive drugs.
Aronow
Wilbert S
WS
Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Westchester Medical Center/New York Medical College, Valhalla, NY 10595, USA. wsaronow@aol.com
D000367:Age Factors; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging; D000959:Antihypertensive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality; D007190:Indapamide / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018579:Patient Selection; D020913:Perindopril / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D020521:Stroke / Q000209:etiology / Q000517:prevention & control; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D000959:Antihypertensive Agents; D007190:Indapamide; D020913:Perindopril