title: The use of positive airway pressure therapy for treatment of resistant hypertension.
abstract: It is well accepted that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a risk factor for hypertension. In the subgroup of patients with resistant hypertension (rHTN), OSA appears to be particularly rampant; suggesting sleep disordered breathing may contribute to pathological mechanisms that make blood pressure difficult to control. This article explores potential mechanisms by which sleep apnea contributes to rHTN, and examines the impact of treating OSA with positive airway pressure therapy on blood pressure control. In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in randomized controlled trials of positive airway pressure therapy in patients with OSA and rHTN, because patients with rHTN respond poorly to medications. As a result, identifying novel targets for blood pressure control in this high-risk population has become paramount.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine , Yale University, Section of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine , New Haven , USA.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Won
authors.affiliation: b Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine , Stanford University , Redwood City , CA , USA.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Guilleminault
mesh_terms: D001794:Blood Pressure; D045422:Continuous Positive Airway Pressure / Q000379:methods*; D018432:Drug Resistance, Multiple; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D012307:Risk Factors; D012891:Sleep Apnea Syndromes / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D007004:Hypoglycemic Agents
keywords: Positive airway pressure; continuous positive airway pressure; obstructive sleep apnea; resistant hypertension; sleep disordered breathing