Olmesartan reduced microalbuminuria in Japanese subjects with type 2 diabetes

CLINICAL EFFECTS AND RENOPROTECTIVE FACILITIES OF OLMESARTAN AND LERKANIDIPINEAS MONOTHERAPY AND WHEN COMBINED APPLICATION IN PATIENTS WITH ARTERIAL HYPERTENSION

The evaluation of the clinical efficacy and renoprotective effects of olmesartan and lercanidipine as monotherapy and when combined application in patients with arterial hypertension (AH) 1-2 degrees and microalbuminuria (MAU).It is established that the degree of blood pressure (BP) reduction and corrective influence on diurnal BP profile were similar in groups of monotherapy with olmesartan and lercanidipine. In the group of combined application of the studied drugs target BP levels were achieved in 88% of cases in the monotherapy group and 78% (1G) and 76% (2 G).Revealed renoprotective effects of olmesartan and lercanidipine as when used in monotherapy and in combination in patients with arterial hypertension of 1-2 degrees, and MAU, revealed reliable decrease in MAU. The greatest reduction in MAU was achieved in the combination therapy group.

Improvement of Plasma Biomarkers after Switching Stroke Patients from Other Angiotensin II Type I Receptor Blockers to Olmesartan

BACKGROUND

Managing hypertension is crucial for preventing stroke recurrence. Some stroke patients experience resistant hypertension. In our experimental stroke model, olmesartan increased the expression of angiotensin (Ang) II converting enzyme-2. We hypothesized that switching to olmesartan affects biomarkers and the blood pressure (BP) in stroke patients whose BP is insufficiently controlled by standard doses of Ang II type I receptor blockers (ARBs) other than olmesartan.

METHODS

We recruited 25 patients to study our hypothesis. All had a history of stroke or silent cerebral infarction. We switched them to olmesartan (10-40 mg per day) for 12 weeks and determined their plasma level of Ang-(1-7), peroxiredoxin, oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL)/β-2-glycoprotein I (β2GPI) complex, adiponectin, high mobility group box 1 (HMGB1), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα) and recorded their BP before and after olmesartan treatment.

RESULTS

After switching the patients to olmesartan, their plasma level of Ang-(1-7) as a vasoprotective indicator and adiponectin regulating metabolic syndrome was increased, and peroxiredoxin and the oxLDL/β2GPI complex indicating its antioxidative stress and its proatherogenicity were lower than their baseline. This suggests that olmesartan may be more effective than other ARBs to improve these conditions. Neither HMGB1 nor TNFα reflecting an inflammatory response was affected, suggesting that the anti-inflammatory effects of olmesartan are similar to those of other ARBs. The recommended BP (<140/90) was obtained in 10 of the 25 patients after switching to olmesartan. No adverse events occurred.

CONCLUSIONS

Switching from other ARBs to olmesartan may be a promising therapeutic option in patients with resistant hypertension.

Difference in the effects of switching from candesartan to olmesartan or telmisartan to olmesartan in hypertensive patients with type 2 diabetes: the COTO study

Purpose

This open-label controlled study compared the therapeutic efficacy of three representative angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) in hypertensive patients with type 2 diabetes attending a hospital outpatient clinic. The primary measure in this study was morning home blood pressure (BP).

Patients and methods

Two studies were done concurrently to investigate the effects of switching from two different ARBs to olmesartan. Patients prescribed candesartan (8 mg once daily in the morning) or telmisartan (40 mg once daily in the morning) for 16 weeks were switched to olmesartan (20 mg once daily in the morning) for 16 weeks. Then, they were switched back to candesartan (CO group) or telmisartan (TO group) for another 16 weeks.

Results

Data from all patients in the CO group (n=165) and the TO group (n=152) were analyzed. Clinic and morning home BP and urinary albumin levels showed a significant decrease from baseline at 16 weeks after switching to olmesartan in both the CO and the TO group (clinic BP, morning home diastolic BP, and urinary albumin, P<0.05; morning home systolic BP, P<0.01). In contrast, clinic BP, morning home BP, and urinary albumin were significantly increased again 16 weeks after switching back to candesartan or telmisartan (clinic BP, morning home diastolic BP, and urinary albumin, P<0.05; morning home systolic BP, P<0.01). No subjects experienced an adverse reaction that required withdrawal from the study. No adverse reactions attributable to the study drugs were observed.

Conclusion

Olmesartan is a promising ARB for BP control in hypertensive type 2 diabetics.

Olmesartan vs. ramipril in elderly hypertensive patients: review of data from two published randomized, double-blind studies

Hypertension is a frequent condition among individuals over 65 years of age worldwide and is one of the most important risk factors for cardiovascular (CV) disease. Effective drug treatment of elderly hypertensives is usually associated with a marked reduction in CV morbidity and mortality. Among the different classes of antihypertensive agents, angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) and ACE-inhibitors are supposed to provide the best efficacy in lowering blood pressure (BP) and protecting target organ damage while featuring a good tolerability profile. However, up to date, few randomized clinical studies have directly compared the activity and safety of ARBs and ACE-inhibitors in elderly hypertensive patients. Aim of this review of published and unpublished pooled data from two recent randomized, double-blind, controlled trials, is to offer a comprehensive head-to-head comparison of the antihypertensive efficacy of the ARB olmesartan medoxomil vs. the ACE-inhibitor ramipril in a large study population including more than 1,400 hypertensive subjects aged 65-89 years with mild-to-moderate essential hypertension. The efficacy of the two drugs was separately evaluated in subgroups of patients classified according to the presence of metabolic syndrome, reduced renal function, CV risk level, gender, class of age, type of arterial hypertension and previous antihypertensive treatments. Olmesartan showed a greater efficacy than ramipril both in terms of clinic BP reduction and rate normalization. Olmesartan appeared significantly superior to ramipril in providing a more homogeneous and long-lasting 24-h BP control and maintaining an effective antihypertensive action in the last 6-h period from drug intake. In subgroups of patients with additional clinical conditions, olmesartan gave comparable, and in some cases greater, BP responses than those achieved with the ACE-inhibitor. The incidence of adverse events was similar for both drugs. Olmesartan may thus represent an effective alternative to ACE-inhibitors among first-line drug treatments for hypertension in older people.

Reduction in urinary albumin excretion with a moderate low-carbohydrate diet in patients with type 2 diabetes: a 12-month intervention

INTRODUCTION

Urinary albumin excretion (UAE) is a marker of the early phase of diabetic nephropathy. Although a low-carbohydrate diet (LCD) has been shown to effectively improve glycemic control in patients with type 2 diabetes (T2DM), its effects on UAE remain unknown.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 124 patients (mean age ± standard deviation, 61.6 ± 9.2 years) with T2DM were instructed to consume a moderate LCD (1734 ± 416 kcal/d; % carbohydrate:fat:protein = 38:37:19) for 12 months. We measured the levels of UAE, hemoglobin A(1c), fasting plasma glucose, fasting serum insulin (IRI), and the serum lipid profiles in the patients and recorded their dosages of antidiabetic drugs during this 12-month period.

RESULTS

Of the 124 patients, 68 were normoalbuminuric, 50 were microalbuminuric, and six were macroalbuminuric at baseline. The patients had relatively good compliance with the moderate LCD diet. After 12 months, the mean levels of hemoglobin A(1c), fasting plasma glucose, IRI, homeostasis model assessment-estimated insulin resistance, and the body mass index of all participants significantly decreased (P = 0.003 for IRI and P < 0.001 for the other parameters). Among the microalbuminuric patients (n = 50), remission to normoalbuminuria was frequently achieved (52%) and the geometric mean UAE significantly decreased by 53% (95% confidence interval: 43, 62) over 12 months (P < 0.001). After patients taking an angiotensin 2 receptor blocker were excluded, the UAE significantly decreased by 41% (n = 26, 95% confidence interval: 25, 54; P < 0.001). Moreover, the reduction in UAE was significantly and positively correlated with a reduction in homeostasis model assessment-estimated insulin resistance levels (r(s) = 0.308; P = 0.031).

CONCLUSION

A moderate LCD (38% carbohydrate diet) achieved a remarkable reduction in UAE over 12 months in microalbuminuric patients with T2DM.

ROADMAP and ORIENTAL Trials: the Re-emergence of J-Curve Ghost?

It still remains unknown whether angiotensin-receptor blockers (ARBs) are cardioprotective in patients with type 2 diabetes. The recent two clinical trials, the ROADMAP and the ORIENT, have suggested that fatal cardiovascular events or cardiovascular deaths were unexpectedly higher in olmesartan group. These results suggest that aggressive blood pressure lowering may cause a higher risk in some high-risk patients, especially in those with preexisting coronary heart disease, indicating a possibility that the J-curve phenomenon may exist in some group of patients.