Add-On Effect of Bedtime Dosing of the .ALPHA.1-Adrenergic Receptor Antagonist Doxazosin on Morning Hypertension and Left Ventricular Hypertrophy in Patients Undergoing Long-Term Amlodipine Monotherapy

2020 Consensus Statement of the Taiwan Hypertension Society and the Taiwan Society of Cardiology on Home Blood Pressure Monitoring for the Management of Arterial Hypertension

To facilitate the applications of home blood pressure (HBP) monitoring in clinical settings, the Taiwan Hypertension Society and the Taiwan Society of Cardiology jointly put forward the Consensus Statement on HBP monitoring according to up-to-date scientific evidence by convening a series of expert meetings and compiling opinions from the members of these two societies. In this Consensus Statement as well as recent international guidelines for management of arterial hypertension, HBP monitoring has been implemented in diagnostic confirmation of hypertension, identification of hypertension phenotypes, guidance of anti-hypertensive treatment, and detection of hypotensive events. HBP should be obtained by repetitive measurements based on the " 722 " principle, which is referred to duplicate blood pressure readings taken per occasion, twice daily, over seven consecutive days. The " 722" principle of HBP monitoring should be applied in clinical settings, including confirmation of hypertension diagnosis, 2 weeks after adjustment of antihypertensive medications, and at least every 3 months in well-controlled hypertensive patients. A good reproducibility of HBP monitoring could be achieved by individuals carefully following the instructions before and during HBP measurement, by using validated BP devices with an upper arm cuff. Corresponding to office BP thresholds of 140/90 and 130/80 mmHg, the thresholds (or targets) of HBP are 135/85 and 130/80 mmHg, respectively. HBP-based hypertension management strategies including bedtime dosing (for uncontrolled morning hypertension), shifting to drugs with longer-acting antihypertensive effect (for uncontrolled evening hypertension), and adding another antihypertensive drug (for uncontrolled morning and evening hypertension) should be considered. Only with the support from medical caregivers, paramedical team, or tele- monitoring, HBP monitoring could reliably improve the control of hypertension.

Morning blood pressure monitoring in the management of hypertension

: The aim of the current article is to review the current evidence on the role of morning blood pressure (BP) in the management of hypertension. Morning BP surge had been and will continue to be a hot topic of hypertension research. However, more evidence is needed to prove its clinical usefulness in the management of hypertension. Masked morning hypertension, as the other forms of masked hypertension, requires more research. The concept of morning BP monitoring could be clinically relevant in the therapeutic management of hypertension and in the prevention of cardiovascular complications by defining and treating morning hypertension. Antihypertensive medication is usually taken in the morning. The presence of uncontrolled morning BP during trough effect hours could be a hallmark of inadequate antihypertensive regimen, such as, for instance, the use of short-acting or intermediate-acting drugs, under dosing of drugs, or no or low use of combination therapy. To improve the management of hypertension in general and morning hypertension in particular, long-acting antihypertensive drugs should be used in appropriate often full dosages and in proper combinations. The clinical usefulness of antihypertensive drugs of specific mechanisms against morning BP or split or timed dosing of long-acting drugs in controlling morning BP remains under investigation. In conclusion, there is some evidence that morning BP is critical in the incidence of cardiovascular complications. However, proving its clinical usefulness in the management of hypertension requires further research.

Management of morning hypertension: a consensus statement of an Asian expert panel

Morning blood pressure (BP) surge is an important aspect of hypertension research. Morning BP monitoring could be a clinically relevant concept in the therapeutic management of hypertension and in the prevention of cardiovascular complications by defining and treating morning hypertension. Because antihypertensive medication is often taken in the morning, uncontrolled morning BP during the trough effect hours could be a hallmark of inadequate choice of antihypertensive regimen, such as the use of short- or intermediate-acting drugs, underdosing of drugs, or no use or underuse of combination therapy. To improve the management of hypertension in general and morning hypertension in particular, long-acting antihypertensive drugs should be used in appropriate, often full dosages and in proper combinations. The clinical usefulness of antihypertensive drugs with specific mechanisms for morning BP or split or timed dosing of long-acting drugs in controlling morning BP remains under investigation.

Clinical Implications of the Change in Glomerular Filtration Rate with Adrenergic Blockers in Patients with Morning Hypertension: The Japan Morning Surge-1 Study

Background. The aim of this study was to clarify the relationship between the change in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and urinary albumin by antihypertensive treatment.Methods. We randomized 611 treated patients with morning hypertension into either an added treatment group, for whom doxazosin was added to the current medication, or a control group, who continued their current medications. We compared the change in eGFR and urinary albumin creatinine ratio (UACR) between the groups.Results. The extent of the reduction in eGFR was significantly greater in the added treatment group than in the control group (−3.83  versus −1.08 mL/min/1.73 m2,P=0.001). In multivariable analyses, the change in eGFR was positively associated with the change in UACR in the added treatment group (β=0.20,P=0.001), but not in the control group (β=−0.002,P=0.97). When the changes in eGFR were divided by each CKD stage, eGFR was significantly more decreased in stage 1 than in the other stages in the added treatment group (P<0.001), but no differences were seen in the control group (P=0.44).Conclusion. The reduction of eGFR could be seen only in the early stage of CKD, and this treatment appeared to have no negative effect on renal function.

Chronotherapy in Nigerian hypertensives

OBJECTIVES

Hypertension continues to cause significant morbidity and mortality worldwide, and the situation is worse in Blacks. Treatment has proved to be beneficial, but control has remained abysmal. Night-time chronotherapy is producing better control and outcome, but has only largely been tried in the West. This work attempts to see what benefits would emerge with night-time chronotherapy as compared with the current recommended morning intake of antihypertensives in an entirely African cohort.

METHODS

Ambulant grade 1 and 2 hypertensives attending our outpatient service were randomized after a washout period into morning or night-time ingestion groups. Drugs were tailored towards each patient's cardiovascular disease profile and reviewed to ensure control. They were comprehensively evaluated on enrolment and 12 weeks later.

RESULTS

Both groups were similar on all scores at baseline. After 12 weeks of treatment, the mean changes in diastolic blood pressure (DBP), mean arterial pressure (MAP), left ventricular posterior diameter (LVPWD) and left ventricular mass (LVM) were greater, to a statistically significant extent in the night-time group. The difference in the systolic blood pressure (SBP) and interventricular septum diameter (IVSD) tended to be greater in the same group but did not differ between the groups to a statistically significant extent.

CONCLUSION

Chronotherapeutic studies in the West recorded greater success with night-time ingestion which produced better control and a day-long profile. Generalization to other races was cautioned against until such observations could be replicated. We have shown that patients using their once-daily antihypertensives at night after 12 weeks recorded better reductions in SBP, DBP, MAP, LVPWD, IVSD and LVM. Since blood pressure problems run a worse course in Blacks, we recommend encouragement of night-time intake in those preferring it and suggest that in those requiring two or more drugs one should be taken at night.

Blood pressure-lowering effect and duration of action of bedtime administration of doxazosin determined by home blood pressure measurement

The effects and duration of action of bedtime administration of doxazosin 2 mg for 4 weeks on uncontrolled morning home hypertension were investigated. Morning home blood pressure (HBP) was significantly lowered by bedtime administration of doxazosin. Doxazosin significantly lowered evening HBP only in the subgroup of patients with an uncontrolled evening HBP. The evening (E)/morning (M) ratio was greater in patients with an uncontrolled evening HBP than in those with a controlled evening HBP. The results suggest that bedtime administration of doxazosin effectively suppresses morning HBP in uncontrolled morning hypertensives and lowers evening HBP in uncontrolled evening hypertensives.

A New Baroreceptor Sensitivity-Restoring Ca-Channel Blocker Diminishes Age-Related Morning Blood Pressure Increase in Hypertensive Patients: Open-Label Monitoring of Azelnidipine Treatment for Hypertension in the Early Morning (At-HOME) Study

Background: Morning blood pressure (BP) surge, which exhibits an age-related increase, is a risk factor for stroke in elderly hypertensive patients, independently of the 24-h BP level. We studied the effect of the new baroreceptor sensitivity (BRS)-restoring Ca-channel blocker (CCB) azelnidipine (AZ) on this age-related morning BP increase. Methods: We conducted a 16-week prospective study to clarify the effect of morning dosing of AZ on home BPs measured in the morning and in the evening in 2,546 hypertensive patients (mean age, 65.1 years; female, 53.6%). Results: At baseline, ME-Dif (morning systolic BP [SBP]–evening SBP) increased with age, independently of ME-Ave (average of the morning and evening SBPs). This age-related increase of ME-Dif was exaggerated by regular alcohol drinking and beta-blocker use. After AZ treatment (14.3 ± 3.6 mg/day), ME-AV and ME-Dif were significantly reduced independently of each other, with reductions of –18.1 ± 15.6 and –2.5 ± 13.2 mmHg, respectively (both p < 0.001). AZ treatment decreased age-related increase in ME-Dif particularly in patients who were regular consumers of alcohol and in beta-blocker users. Conclusions: The new BRS-restoring CCB AZ significantly reduced age-related increase in morning BP and had some potential benefit on cardiovascular protection in hypertension, particularly in elderly patients and/or consumers of alcohol.

Changes in home versus clinic blood pressure with antihypertensive treatments: a meta-analysis

Home blood pressure (HBP) monitoring is recommended for assessing the effects of antihypertensive treatment, but it is not clear how the treatment-induced changes in HBP compare with the changes in clinic blood pressure (CBP). We searched PubMed using the terms "home or self-measured blood pressure," and selected articles in which the changes in CBP and HBP (using the upper arm oscillometric method) induced by antihypertensive drugs were presented. We performed a systematic review of 30 articles published before March 2008 that included a total of 6794 subjects. As there was significant heterogeneity in most of the outcomes, a random effects model was used for the meta-analyses. The mean changes (+/-SE) in CBP and HBP (systolic/diastolic) were -15.2+/-0.03/-10.3+/-0.03 mm Hg and -12.2+/-0.04/-8.0+/-0.04 mm Hg respectively, although there were wide varieties of differences in the reduction between HBP and CBP. The reductions in CBP were correlated with those of HBP (systolic BP; r=0.66, B=0.48, diastolic BP; r=0.71, B=0.52, P<0.001). In 7 studies that also included 24-hour BP monitoring, the reduction of HBP was greater than that of 24-hour BP in systolic (HBP; -12.6+/-0.06 mm Hg, 24-hour BP; -11.9+/-0.04 mm Hg, P<0.001). In 5 studies that included daytime and nighttime systolic BP separately, HBP decreased 15% more than daytime ambulatory BP and 30% more than nighttime ambulatory BP. In conclusion, HBP falls approximately 20% less than CBP with antihypertensive treatments. Daytime systolic BP falls 15% less and nighttime systolic BP falls 30% less than home systolic BP.