Osteoprotegerin and Vascular Dysfunction in Patients with Stage 3 Chronic Kidney Disease and Those without Renal Dysfunction: A Case-Control Study.

Background: Osteoprotegerin (OPG) is a marker of vascular calcification and cardiovascular risk in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD).

Objective: This study aimed to compare and correlate OPG values with flow-mediated dilation (FMD) and pulse wave velocity (PWV) measurements in patients in stage 3 CKD and those without renal dysfunction.

Methods: This case-control study was conducted in a specialized hypertension center in 2022.

A Program to Optimize the Detection of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation: The RITMO Study.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained arrythmia, but still underdiagnosed especially among asymptomatic patients.

Objectives: To evaluate a simple strategy to optimize the identification of AF.

Methods: Asymptomatic patients aged 65 years or older, with hypertension or heart failure (HF), were included.

Regular source of primary care and health services utilisation among Brazilian elderly with mental-physical multimorbidity.

Background: In ageing populations, multimorbidity is a complex challenge to health systems, especially when the individuals have both mental and physical morbidities. Although a regular source of primary care (RSPC) is associated with better health outcomes, its relation with health service utilisation in elderly patients with mental-physical multimorbidity (MP-MM) is scarce.

Objective: This study explored the relations among health service utilisation, presence of RSPC and MP-MM among elderly Brazilians.

Intracranial pressure waveform in patients with essential hypertension.

Background: There is a strong association between hypertension and cerebrovascular diseases, but most of the mechanistic bases to justify this correlation remains misunderstood.

Objective: To evaluate intracranial pressure waveform in long-term essential hypertensive patients with a non-invasive device, brain4care (b4c).

Methods: Cross-sectional study in patients with hypertension.

Pulse Wave Velocity of 8.2 m/s as a Threshold Associated with Cardiovascular Target Organ Damage Presence.

Background: Previous studies have established normal and reference values for Pulse Wave Velocity (PWV). However, the PWV value that has the strongest association with cardiovascular biomarkers remains poorly understood.

Objective: This study aimed to determine the PWV value more likely to be associated with left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), increased intima-media thickness (IMT), and presence of carotid plaques in patients with hypertension.

Hypertension evaluated in the public and private Brazilian health system hypertension in public and private service.

Introduction: Hypertension (HT) remains the leading cause of death worldwide. In Brazil it is estimated that 35% of the adult population has HT and that about 20% of these have blood pressure values within the targets recommended for the reduction of cardiovascular risk. There are some data that point to different control rates in patients treated by cardiologists in public and private referral center and this is an important point to be investigated and discussed.

Pharmacological treatment of hypertension guided by peripheral or central blood pressure: a comparison between the two strategies.

Background: Arterial hypertension treatment guided by central blood pressures (CPB) rather than peripheral blood pressures (PBP) measurement has the potential to show greater effectiveness in preventing or even regressing stiffness and target organ damage (TOD).

Objective: This study aimed to compare the parameters of CBP and PBP measurements, arterial stiffness, TOD and renal profile in patients with anti-hypertensive treatment guided by CBP or PBP targets.

Methods: A randomized clinical trial was conducted in central group (CG) and peripheral group (PG).

SAGE Score in Normotensive and Pre-Hypertensive Patients: A Proof of Concept.

Background: The SAGE score was developed to detect individuals at risk for increased pulse wave velocity (PWV). So far, studies have been focused on hypertensive patients.

Objective: To assess the ability of the score to detect non-hypertensive and pre-hypertensive patients at risk for increased PWV.

Identifying multimorbidity clusters among Brazilian older adults using network analysis: Findings and perspectives.

In aging populations, multimorbidity (MM) is a significant challenge for health systems, however there are scarce evidence available in Low- and Middle-Income Countries, particularly in Brazil. A national cross-sectional study was conducted with 11,177 Brazilian older adults to evaluate the occurrence of MM and related clusters in Brazilians aged ≥ 60 years old. MM was assessed by a list of 16 physical and mental morbidities and it was defined considering ≥ 2 morbidities.

Cardiovascular risk factors in the elderly: a 10-year follow-up survival analysis.

Aims: Cardiovascular risk factors present a high prevalence and have an impact on the morbimortality of the elderly; however, studies evaluating the impact of cardiovascular risk factors in the elderly have had short follow-up times and have not allowed specific analyses of the effects of these factors in the aged population, including how they affect the survival of the elderly. This study aimed to analyse the survival of elderly individuals living in the community, considering the presence of cardiovascular risk factors.

Methods And Results: A prospective 10-year follow-up was initiated in 2008 with a cohort of 418 elderly people living in a community in Central Brazil.

Antihypertensive effect of Equisetum arvense L.: a double-blind, randomized efficacy and safety clinical trial.

Background: Equisetum arvense L. (EA) is a traditional phytomedicine used as a diuretic agent worldwide and regulated strictly by European Medicine Agency (EMA) and Brazilian National Health Surveillance Agency (ANVISA). However, few studies evaluating its efficacy and safety have been published and no clinical trial assessing its antihypertensive effect has been reported to date.

Comparison between the Effects of Hymalaian Salt and Common Salt Intake on Urinary Sodium and Blood Pressure in Hypertensive Individuals.

Background: The Himalayan salt (HS) has become a popular alternative for the traditional table salt (TS) due to its health benefit claims, particularly for individuals with arterial hypertension. However, despite the increase in HS consumption, there is still a lack of clinical evidence to support a recommendation for its consumption by health professionals.

Objective: This cross-over study aimed to compare the impact of HS and TS intake on systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and urinary sodium concentration in individuals with arterial hypertension.

A SAGE score cutoff that predicts high-pulse wave velocity as measured by oscillometric devices in Brazilian hypertensive patients.

We aimed to identify the optimal cutoff SAGE score for Brazilian hypertensive patients who had their pulse wave velocity (PWV) measured with oscillometric devices. A retrospective analysis of patients who underwent central blood pressure measurement using a validated oscillometric device, the Mobil-O-Graph® (IEM, Stolberg, Germany), between 2012 and 2019 was performed. Patients with arterial hypertension and available data on all SAGE parameters were selected.

Physical inactivity during leisure and school time is associated with the presence of common mental disorders in adolescence.

Objective: To investigate the association of physical inactivity in leisure and school time with common mental disorders during adolescence.

Methods: The sample consisted of 73,399 adolescents (12-17 years old), participants in the Estudo de Riscos Cardiovasculares em Adolescentes (Erica - Study of Cardiovascular Risks in Adolescents). This cross-sectional, national and school-based study was conducted in 2013 and 2014 in Brazilian municipalities with more than 100,000 inhabitants.

Diastolic Function and Biomarkers of Long-Distance Walking Participants.

Background: The effects of long-distance walking on the cardiovascular system have been little studied.

Objectives: The general objective of this study was to verify these effects on the behavior of diastolic function and the cardiac biomarkers CK-MB (mass), troponin T, and NT-proBNP, in amateur athletes.

Method: This longitudinal study, conducted in 2015, evaluated participants during the following 5 stages: E0 (baseline) before starting the trajectory and the others, E1, E2, E3, and E4, at the end of each day, totaling 244.

Management of early breast cancer during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil.

Purpose: The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted early breast cancer (EBC) treatment worldwide. This study analyzed how Brazilian breast specialists are managing EBC.

Methods: An electronic survey was conducted with members of the Brazilian Society of Breast Cancer Specialists (SBM) between April 30 and May 11, 2020.

Effects of added salt reduction on central and peripheral blood pressure.

Background: Although the effects of salt intake reduction on casual blood pressure have been extensively studied in hypertensive individuals, data on reductions of added salt on arterial stiffness in both normotensive and prehypertensive subjects are scarce.

Objective: To evaluate the effects of progressive reduction in added salt intake (from 6 grams to 4 grams per day) on peripheral and central blood pressure and arterial stiffness in normotensive, prehypertensive and hypertensive individuals.

Methods: This was a single-blinded clinical trial with 13 weeks of follow-up.

Smoking, alcohol consumption and mental health: Data from the Brazilian study of Cardiovascular Risks in Adolescents (ERICA).

Introduction: Previous researches have indicated a strong association of alcohol and tobacco use with psychiatric disorders, but the relationship with depression and anxiety symptoms is still uncertain. We investigated the association of psychological distress and alcohol consumption, tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke (SHS) among adolescents in a developing country.

Methods: The authors evaluated 73,399 individuals (12-17 years) who participated in the Cardiovascular Risks Study in Adolescents (ERICA), a cross-sectional, national and school-based study, carried out in 124 Brazilian municipalities.

Hypertension Prevalence, Treatment and Control in Older Adults in a Brazilian Capital City.

Background: The diagnosis, treatment and control of arterial hypertension are fundamental for a reduction in cardiovascular outcomes, especially in the elderly. In Brazil, there are few studies that specifically identified these rates in the elderly population.

Objective: To verify rates of prevalence, treatment and control of hypertension in elderly people living in the urban area of a Brazilian capital city.

Self-rated health status and illiteracy as death predictors in a Brazilian cohort.

Cohort studies assessing predictive values of self-rated health (SRH) and illiteracy on mortality in low-to-middle income countries are missing in the literature. Aiming to determine if these two variables were death predictors, an observational prospective population-based cohort study was conducted in a Brazilian small city. The cohort was established in 2002 with a representative sample of adults living in the city, and re-assessed in 2015.