The Hypertension in the Very Elderly Trial - latest data.
Author(s): Mukhtar O(1), Jackson SH.
Affiliation(s): Author information:
(1)King's College Hospital, Denmark Hill, London, UK. o.mukhtar@nhs.net
Publication date & source: 2013, Br J Clin Pharmacol. , 75(4):951-4
Early trials in the field of hypertension focused on adults in their fifties and
sixties. However, with the passage of time, a progressive effort has been made to
expand the evidence base for treatment in older adults. 2008 saw publication of
data from the Hypertension in the Very Elderly Trial which demonstrated
significant mortality and morbidity benefits from antihypertensive therapy in
octogenarians. More recently, additional data from this cohort has been published
suggesting that appropriate anti-hypertensive therapy may lead to a reduction in
incident cognitive impairment and fractures, whilst a 1 year open label extension
of the main study confirmed many of the original trial findings. This review
provides an overview of the Hypertension in the Very Elderly Trial whilst also
discursively evaluating the latest data.
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