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Biomedical subjects

Kenneth L Choi

Publications and source records attributed to Kenneth L Choi.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

Antihypertensive, antiproteinuric therapy and myocardial infarction and stroke prevention.

Proteinuria is a graded marker for kidney damage, as well as the risk for future cardiovascular events. Angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEIs) and angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) reduce urinary protein excretion and slow progression of renal impairment, independent of blood pressure lowering. Both the Irbesartan Diabetic Nephropathy Trial (IDNT) and the Reduction in Endpoints in NIDDM with the Angiotensin Antagonist Losartan (RENAAL) study were large, randomized, prospective studies in type 2 diabetic patients with proteinuria. There was no reduction in the incidence of myocardial infarction or stroke with the ARBs compared to placebo in either trial. A broader overview of clinical trials comparing ACEIs and ARBs with other antihypertensive drugs fails to show any substantive blood pressure-independent effects on stroke or myocardial infarction with these classes of drugs. Therefore, for cardiovascular end points (as opposed to renal end points), it may be more important that the blood pressure is reduced, rather than how the process is started.

Angiotensin II Type 1 Receptor Blockers↗

Hypertension treatment guidelines: practical implications.

The focus of blood pressure (BP) lowering is to prevent or reduce the risk for cardiovascular and renal events. This rationale forms the basis for the recent guideline statements issued by the Seventh Joint National Committee, the American Diabetes Association, the European Society of Hypertension, and the Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative. The goal BP in the majority of hypertensive patients should be less than 140/90 mm Hg, with a lower goal of less than 130/80 mm Hg in patients with diabetes or kidney disease. Meta-analyses of clinical trials with renal end points make it clear that the presence of 1 gram or more of proteinuria mandates a BP approaching 115 mm Hg to slow the progression of advanced nephropathy adequately. Compelling indications also exist for the use of certain antihypertensive agents in the setting of kidney dysfunction, diabetes, heart failure, and coronary artery disease. Initiation with 2 antihypertensive agents should be considered strongly for patients with a BP of more than 20 mm Hg greater than the systolic BP goal. This means that those with a goal BP of less than 130 mm Hg should be started on 2 antihypertensive medications with complementary actions when the systolic BP is 150 mm Hg or greater. In patients with kidney disease, reaching the BP goal requires multiple agents that should include an appropriate diuretic and an agent that blocks the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system to slow the progression of kidney disease.

Antihypertensive Agents↗