Relation of low body mass to death and stroke in the systolic hypertension in the elderly program. The SHEP Cooperative Research Group.

Background: There are scant data on the effect of body mass index (BMI) (calculated as weight in kilograms divided by the square of height in meters) on cardiovascular events and death in older patients with hypertension.

Objective: To determine if low body mass in older patients with hypertension confers an increased risk of death or stroke.

Patients: Participants were 3975 men and women (mean age, 71 years) enrolled in 17 US centers in the Systolic Hypertension in the Elderly Program trial, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial of lowdose antihypertensive therapy, with follow-up for 5 years.

Effect of diuretic-based antihypertensive treatment on cardiovascular disease risk in older diabetic patients with isolated systolic hypertension. Systolic Hypertension in the Elderly Program Cooperative Research Group.

Objective: To assess the effect of low-dose, diuretic-based antihypertensive treatment on major cardiovascular disease (CVD) event rates in older, non-insulin-treated diabetic patients with isolated systolic hypertension (ISH), compared with nondiabetic patients.

Design: Double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled trial: the Systolic Hypertension in the Elderly Program (SHEP).

Setting: Multiple clinical and support centers in the United States.

Impact of the treatment of isolated systolic hypertension on behavioral variables. Results from the systolic hypertension in the elderly program.

Background: Little information has been published on the impact of antihypertensive medications on quality of life in older persons. Particular concern has existed that lowering systolic blood pressure in older persons might have adverse consequences on cognition, mood, or leisure activities.

Methods: A multicenter double-blind randomized controlled trial was conducted over an average of 5 years' followup involving 16 academic clinical trial clinics.

Recruitment of elderly volunteers for a multicenter clinical trial: the SHEP pilot study.

Few large trials have involved the elderly, and little is known about the feasibility of recruiting such participants for study and the validity of inferences drawn from them. This article reviews the recruitment experience of the Systolic Hypertension in the Elderly Program (SHEP) pilot study. That program involved five clinical centers, and contacted approximately 75,000 persons in order to enroll a cohort of 551 individuals over 60 years old isolated systolic hypertension.