Cheap blood test could lead to high blood pressure cure (UK)

A study undertaken by Cambridge University found that at least 10 per cent of the 16 million people who suffer with high blood pressure could be cured if diagnosed early. It focused on a specific form of the condition caused by tiny, benign tumours of the adrenal gland, a hormone-producing gland that sits on top of the kidney. If detected with a £15 test, scientists believe it could be treated through keyhole surgery. The British Heart Foundation described the research as "an exciting development" but said it would be dependent upon early diagnosis. The operation is most successful for those under the age of 40. However, the belief that the tumours are extremely rare means that the procedure is only carried out around 300 times a year. Professor Morris Brown, a member of the research team and an honorary consultant physician at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, said the number who could benefit could be around 30 times higher and called for men and women in their 20s and 30s with high blood pressure to be given the blood test

Bad sleep ups blood pressure risk

Elderly men who spend little time in deep sleep could be at risk of developing high blood pressure, according to US scientists. A study on 784 patients, in the journal Hypertension, showed those getting the least deep sleep were at 83% greater risk than those getting the most. Researchers say they would expect a similar effect in women. The British Heart Foundation said it was important for everyone to prioritise sleep. High blood pressure - also known as hypertension - increases the risk of heart attack, stroke and other health problems. Researchers measured the "sleep quality" of 784 men over the age of 65 between 2007 and 2009. At the start none had hypertension, while 243 had the condition by the end of the study

Blood pressure guidelines revised in England and Wales

Patients thought to have high blood pressure should have the diagnosis confirmed at home, according to new guidelines. Patients in England and Wales will be offered extra checks using a mobile device that records blood pressure over 24 hours, says the watchdog NICE. A quarter of patients may find visiting a GP stressful, leading to misdiagnosis and being given drugs they do not need. The move could save the NHS £10.5m a year, predictions suggest. High blood pressure (blood pressure of 140/90mmHg or more) affects about a quarter of all adults in the UK. It is a leading risk factor for heart disease or stroke and costs the NHS about £1bn a year in drugs alone. Currently, most patients found to have high blood pressure for the first time are given a formal diagnosis if their blood pressure is raised at two subsequent visits to the doctor. They may then be prescribed medication to lower their blood pressure

Death rates among those with high blood pressure decreasing, but still high

Death rates have decreased among people with high blood pressure but remain far higher than in those without it, according to research in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association. "Mortality rates are going down for everybody with high blood pressure, but despite the availability of several types of medication to reduce blood pressure, there is still a large gap between those with hypertension and those without," said Earl S. Ford, M.D., M.P.H., study author and medical officer with the U.S. Public Health Service at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

One in four U.S. adults reported having high blood pressure in 2008

More than 59 million Americans age 18 and older were diagnosed with high blood pressure in 2008, according to the latest News and Numbers from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. AHRQ also found that in 2008:

* Three-quarters of people diagnosed with high blood pressure were overweight, obese, or morbidly obese. Roughly 15 percent of healthy weight adults were diagnosed with high blood pressure.
* Adults who exercised vigorously for 30 minutes or more at least three times a week were one-third less likely than those who didn't to have reported having high blood pressure (21 percent versus 32 percent, respectively).
* Nearly 32 percent of black adults reported having high blood pressure, compared to 27 percent of White and 18 percent of Hispanic adults.
* Roughly 29 percent of adults less than 65 years old with public health insurance reported having high blood pressure, versus 19 percent with private insurance and 14 percent of the uninsured.
* Almost 59 percent of seniors age 65 and older reported having been told they had high blood pressure, compared to nearly 34 percent of people ages 45 to 64, 10 percent of those ages 25 to 44, and almost 3 percent of younger adults.

High blood pressure combination pill 'better than one' (UK)

A combination of drugs is better than a single one in treating high blood pressure, a UK study has suggested. The study in the Lancet involved 1,200 people and found starting treatment with two drugs gave better and faster results, with fewer side effects. The approach challenges conventional medical practice where doctors give a patient one drug, then add another later if blood pressure stays high. Almost 10 million people in the UK have high blood pressure - BBC

Kidney zap lowers blood pressure (UK)

"A short blast of radio waves to the kidneys can help control high blood pressure in patients who do not respond to medication, a study shows. The pioneering work, described in The Lancet medical journal, selectively severs nerves to the kidney that play a key role in regulating blood pressure. Although still in the testing phase, experts say the procedure could one day help hundreds of thousands of patients. Half of patients fail to achieve good blood pressure control with drugs. This is partly because it can be difficult to remember to take medication every day. But for up to a fifth of patients it is because the drugs simply have no effect. High blood pressure is an exceedingly common condition, affecting around one in three adults in England. Experts believe the new procedure could help many of these better control their condition, thereby lowering their risk of future strokes and heart attacks"

Study links sleep blood pressure in teens

Teenagers who aren't getting enough of the right kind of sleep are losing more than just a little shut-eye - they may also be increasing their risks for cardiovascular disease, according to a landmark American study released Monday. The study, published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, is the first of its kind to examine how lack of sleep and quality of sleep can affect blood pressure levels in healthy teenagers. Between 2001 and 2004, researchers measured blood pressure levels in a sample of 238 teenagers aged 13 to 16 and found that those who have low sleep efficiency - such as being unable to fall asleep right away or those who tend to wake up too early - were 3.5 times more likely to have high blood pressure than teenagers who have a high level of sleep efficiency. The report also discovered that those who had less than 6.5 hours of sleep were also 2.5 times more likely to have elevated blood pressure levels - Canwest

Revolutionary operation could 'cure' high blood pressure (UK)

A revolutionary new operation which could effectively cure high blood pressure has been developed by scientists, offering hope to hundreds of thousands of sufferers. In what is being hailed as the most exciting development in the field for 50 years, doctors can treat the condition with a simple procedure in under an hour. It could allow some sufferers to come off medication completely and offer hope for those for whom existing treatments have no effect. The technique, which is relatively straightforward and cheap for the NHS, could reduce the risk of a major heart attack or stroke in such patients by half. The Daily Telegraph can disclose that the new procedure, which involves placing tiny burns on a nerve responsible for high blood pressure in some people, has been carried out in Britain for the first time. It is part of an international clinical trial which could lead to the new treatment being offered on the NHS. An estimated 15 million people in Britain suffer from high blood pressure, also known as hypertension - around half of them undiagnosed. About one in 10 sufferers cannot control the condition with medication or cannot tolerate the drugs, leaving them at greater risk. Hundreds of thousands face a lifetime on medication to reduce the risk of suffering heart disease, strokes or kidney failure. Dr Mel Lobo, a specialist in clinical hypertension at Barts and the London NHS Trust, said: "This is the most exciting development in hypertension since the advent of anti-hypertensive medication 50 years ago. 'It is hard to forecast the limitations and it could eventually be compared to medication.' The new procedure, called renal sympathetic-nerve ablation, involves inserting a wire into a blood vessel close to the kidneys to burn through nerves which carry signals that stimulate high blood pressure. It disrupts signals from the brain telling the kidneys to keep blood pressure raised. Initial tests suggest it can be effective within three months. Anthony Henry, 68, a retired chef from Stratford in East London, became the first person in Britain to have the operation. Watched by The Daily Telegraph, the team at the London Chest Hospital carried out the painstaking procedure in just over one hour. Mr Henry, who is diabetic and has already suffered a stroke and a deep vein thrombosis, was awake throughout the procedure and spoke to Prof Martin Rothman, the cardiologist who performed it. He was kept in hospital overnight but it is thought once greater experience is gained with the technique, patients will be able to go home the same day. Mr Henry's blood pressure has already come down, just two weeks after the operation and it is thought most patients will see an improvement within three months. Prof Rothman said: "Patients will be able to walk into the hospital and walk out again the same day. "This relatively trivial procedure has the potential to make a serious improvement to the quality of life for the patient. 'It is very efficient and can lower the blood pressure enough to reduce stroke mortality by 50 per cent.'
It was estimated the procedure could cost the NHS around £4,000 per patient, yet it could prevent significant numbers of strokes and heart attacks saving money on emergency treatment and rehabilitation. Dr Paul Sobotka, chief medical officer of Ardian, an American company which has developed the equipment, said: "For the first time we can think of a cure for hypertension." Mr Henry is one of 110 patients taking part in a trial to evaulate the new technique with half receiving the operation plus their normal medication and the other half only taking their drugs.
Dr David Collier, senior clinical trials fellow at the Biomedical Research Unit at Queen Mary University London, said the operation offers real hope of an alternative to a life on pills for patients whose blood pressure is difficult to control but he warned that it was not the 'lazy person's answer' to diet and exercise. Dr Collier said: "This procedure can bring patients within the normal blood pressure range and may enable some to come off their medication. It is the equivalent of them taking two types of drugs. They could be considered cured, at least in the medium-term and we hope long-term." - Telegraph

Elderly patients 'over-treated' for high blood pressure (UK)

"Elderly patients are being treated too aggressively for high blood pressure, researchers claim. They say the "oldest olds", meaning patients aged 80 plus, are being given too many drugs and in too large doses, which may do them more harm than good. The Cochrane scientists who looked at the available data say doctors can set their targets lower for octogenarians. This makes good economic and clinical sense given the expanding elderly population, they told bmj.com. But doctors said high blood pressure is largely under-recognised and under-treated in the UK. Experts say the "oldest olds" are the fastest growing sector of the world's population. According to latest estimates, the UK population of 85-year-olds will go up by a third by 2020. And more than half of these will need treatment for high blood pressure, the British Medical Journal reports"