The Impact of Environmental Factors on the Mortality of Patients With Chronic Heart Failure.

Outcomes of acute heart failure hospitalizations are worse during the winter than the rest of the year. Seasonality data are more limited for outcomes in chronic heart failure and the effect of environmental variables is unknown. In this population-level study, we merged 20-year data for 555,324 patients with heart failure from the national Veterans Administration database with data on climate from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and air pollutants by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The Effect of Calcium Channel Blockers on Moderate or Severe Albuminuria in Diabetic, Hypertensive Patients.

Objectives: Inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin system are recommended for the management of albuminuria in patients with hypertension and diabetes mellitus, but there is little consensus about alternative therapies. Calcium channel blockers are recommended for the management of hypertension, but the data are controversial regarding their role in patients with albuminuria. This review was designed to assess the efficacy of calcium channel blockers compared with inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin system in decreasing albuminuria in diabetic, hypertensive patients with nephropathy.

Lancet Commission on Hypertension group position statement on the global improvement of accuracy standards for devices that measure blood pressure.

: The Lancet Commission on Hypertension identified that a key action to address the worldwide burden of high blood pressure (BP) was to improve the quality of BP measurements by using BP devices that have been validated for accuracy. Currently, there are over 3000 commercially available BP devices, but many do not have published data on accuracy testing according to established scientific standards. This problem is enabled through weak or absent regulations that allow clearance of devices for commercial use without formal validation.

Heart Failure Prevention in Older Patients Using Intensive Blood Pressure Reduction: Potential Role of Diuretics.

Objectives: This study assessed the potential role of differential diuretic drugs in preventing incident acute decompensated heart failure (ADHF) in the SPRINT (Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial) study.

Background: SPRINT showed that intensive blood pressure reduction in older patients (50 to 97 years of age) resulted in 36% fewer incident cases of ADHF. However, some investigators have questioned whether this was due merely to intergroup differences in diuretic medications.

The Effect of Vegan Diets on Blood Pressure in Adults: A Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.

Background: Vegan diets are increasing in popularity and have beneficial effects on glycemia and blood lipids, but the evidence is inconclusive regarding their effect on blood pressure. The purpose of this study was to review the effect of vegan diets on blood pressure in adults.

Methods: We searched MEDLINE, EMBASE, CENTRAL, and ClinicalTrials.

Distinct age-related associations for body mass index and cognition in cognitively healthy very old veterans.

ABSTRACTAssociations between high body mass index (BMI) and subsequent cognitive decline, reported in elderly averaging below age 75, become less consistent at older ages. We compared the associations of BMI with cognition in moderately old (ages 75-84, N = 154) and oldest-old (85+, N = 93) samples. BMI and cognition were assessed cross-sectionally in cognitively intact elderly (mean age = 84.

Impact of Intensive Versus Standard Blood Pressure Management by Tertiles of Blood Pressure in SPRINT (Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial).

Intensive systolic blood pressure (SBP) control improved outcomes in SPRINT (Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial). Our objective was to expand on reported findings by analysis of baseline characteristics, primary outcomes, adverse events, follow-up blood pressure, and medication use differences by baseline SBP (tertile 1 [T1], <132; tertile 2 [T2], 132-145; and tertile 3 [T3], >145 mm Hg). Participants with higher baseline SBP tertile were more often women and older, had higher cardiovascular risk, and lower utilization of antihypertensive medications, statins, and aspirin.

How Low to Go With Glucose, Cholesterol, and Blood Pressure in Primary Prevention of CVD.

Diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and hypertension are modifiable risk factors that predict cardiovascular disease events. The effect of these risk factors on incident cardiovascular disease increases with progressively higher levels of glucose, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and blood pressure. The thresholds for initiating treatment of these modifiable risk factors and the optimal goals of risk factor modification are a focus of primary prevention research.

The effect of vasodilator β-blockers on renal function in hypertensive patients.

Background: Not only is there a limited number of studies on the effects of vasodilator β-blocker (VBB) therapy on kidney function - specifically, glomerular filtration rate (GFR), serum creatinine (sCr) and proteinuria - but of those that have been reported, the results are mixed. This meta-analysis seeks to assess the efficacy of VBBs on selected renal parameters in hypertensive patients.

Methods: We conducted a meta-analysis of any prospective trial that provided both baseline and follow-up of at least 4 weeks of VBB therapy - carvedilol, labetalol, dilevalol, nebivolol and celiprolol in patients with hypertension.

Chronic kidney disease, cerebral blood flow, and white matter volume in hypertensive adults.

Objective: To determine the relation between markers of kidney disease-estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and urine albumin to creatinine ratio (UACR)-with cerebral blood flow (CBF) and white matter volume (WMV) in hypertensive adults.

Methods: We used baseline data collected from 665 nondiabetic hypertensive adults aged ≥50 years participating in the Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial (SPRINT). We used arterial spin labeling to measure CBF and structural 3T images to segment tissue into normal and abnormal WMV.

Treatment of Hypertension in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease. A Case-Based Summary of the 2015 AHA/ACC/ASH Scientific Statement.

The 2015 American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology/American Society of Hypertension Scientific Statement "Treatment of Hypertension in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease" is summarized in the context of a clinical case. The Statement deals with target blood pressures, and the optimal agents for the treatment of hypertension in patients with stable angina, in acute coronary syndromes, and in patients with ischemic heart failure. In all cases, the recommended blood pressure target is <140/90 mm Hg, but <130/80 mm Hg may be appropriate, especially in those with a history of a previous myocardial infarction or stroke, or at high risk for developing either.

American Society of Hypertension position paper: central blood pressure waveforms in health and disease.

A number of devices are available which noninvasively estimate central aortic blood pressure using a variety of approaches such as tonometry or oscillometry. In this position paper, we discuss how the central pressure waveform is generated and measured, how central pressure waveforms appear in health and disease, the predictive value of central blood pressure measurements, the effects of interventions on waveforms, and areas of future need in this field of clinical and research endeavor.

Antihypertensive Therapies and Cognitive Function: a Review.

Increasing life expectancy has made old age-related health problems like dementia and cognitive decline more prevalent, and these are rapidly becoming important causes of disability and poor quality of life, causing significant add-ons to health-care costs worldwide. Hypertension is the most important modifiable vascular risk factor for the development and progression of both cognitive decline and dementia. In many observational and randomized studies, antihypertensive therapies have been shown to be beneficial in slowing cognitive decline.

Clinical Use of Pulse Wave Analysis: Proceedings From a Symposium Sponsored by North American Artery.

The use of pulse wave analysis may guide the provider in making choices about blood pressure treatment in prehypertensive or hypertensive patients. However, there is little clinical guidance on how to interpret and use pulse wave analysis data in the management of these patients. A panel of clinical researchers and clinicians who study and clinically use pulse wave analysis was assembled to discuss strategies for using pulse wave analysis in the clinical encounter.