Vascular health and risk management
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Vasc Health Risk Manag · Jan 2014
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative StudyA double-blind, randomized trial, including frequent patient-physician contacts and Ramadan-focused advice, assessing vildagliptin and gliclazide in patients with type 2 diabetes fasting during Ramadan: the STEADFAST study.
Several observational studies were conducted with vildagliptin in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) fasting during Ramadan, showing significantly lower incidences of hypoglycemia with vildagliptin versus sulfonylureas, including gliclazide. It was of interest to complement the existing real-life evidence with data from a randomized, double-blind, clinical trial. ⋯ In line with the results from previous observational studies, vildagliptin was shown in this interventional study to be an effective, safe, and well-tolerated treatment in patients with T2DM fasting during Ramadan, with a consistently low incidence of hypoglycemia across studies, accompanied by good glycemic and weight control. In contrast, gliclazide showed a lower incidence of hypoglycemia in the present interventional than the previous observational studies. This is suggested to be linked to the specific circumstances of this study, including frequent patient-physician contacts, Ramadan-focused advice, a recent switch in treatment, and very well-controlled patients, which is different from what is often seen in real life.
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Vasc Health Risk Manag · Jan 2014
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative StudyReduction in cardiovascular risk using a proactive multifactorial intervention is consistent among patients residing in Pacific Asian and non-Pacific Asian regions: a CRUCIAL trial subanalysis.
Few trials have compared different approaches to cardiovascular disease prevention among Pacific Asian (PA) populations. The Cluster Randomized Usual Care versus Caduet Investigation Assessing Long-term-risk (CRUCIAL) trial demonstrated that a proactive multifactorial intervention (PMI) approach (based on single-pill amlodipine/atorvastatin) resulted in a greater reduction in calculated Framingham 10-year coronary heart disease (CHD) risk compared with usual care (UC) among hypertensive patients with additional risk factors. One-third of CRUCIAL patients resided in the PA region. The aim of this subanalysis was to compare two approaches to cardiovascular risk factor management (PMI versus UC) among patients residing in PA and non-PA regions. ⋯ The PMI approach was more effective in reducing calculated Framingham 10-year CHD risk compared with UC among men and women with and without diabetes residing in the PA and non-PA region.
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Vasc Health Risk Manag · Jan 2014
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter StudyPantethine, a derivative of vitamin B5, favorably alters total, LDL and non-HDL cholesterol in low to moderate cardiovascular risk subjects eligible for statin therapy: a triple-blinded placebo and diet-controlled investigation.
High serum concentration of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) is a major risk factor for coronary heart disease. The efficacy of pantethine treatment on cardiovascular risk markers was investigated in a randomized, triple-blinded, placebo-controlled study, in a low to moderate cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk North American population eligible for statin therapy, using the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) guidelines. A total of 32 subjects were randomized to pantethine (600 mg/day from weeks 1 to 8 and 900 mg/day from weeks 9 to 16) or placebo. ⋯ Coenzyme Q10 significantly increased from baseline to week 4 and remained elevated until week 16, in both the pantethine and placebo groups. After 16 weeks, the participants on placebo did not show significant improvement in any CVD risk end points. This study confirms that pantethine lowers cardiovascular risk markers in low to moderate CVD risk participants eligible for statins according to NCEP guidelines.
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Vasc Health Risk Manag · Jan 2014
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyEffects of aliskiren- and ramipril-based treatment on central aortic blood pressure in elderly with systolic hypertension: a substudy of AGELESS.
Systolic hypertension is the most common form of hypertension in elderly patients. There is increasing evidence that measurement of central aortic pressure (CAP) better accounts for cardiovascular risk than brachial blood pressure (BP). The Aliskiren for GEriatric LowEring of SyStolic hypertension (AGELESS) study in elderly patients with systolic hypertension showed that aliskiren-based therapy provided greater reductions in peripheral BP than ramipril-based therapy over 12 and 36 weeks of treatment. Here, we present CAP results in a substudy of elderly patients from the AGELESS study. ⋯ Aliskiren-based therapy provides comparable reductions in CASP to ramipril-based therapy. Although the results did not reach statistical significance, these findings, when coupled with those of the main study, suggest that aliskiren may offer effective control of central BP in elderly patients with systolic hypertension and may be a good alternative to ramipril.
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Vasc Health Risk Manag · Jan 2013
Randomized Controlled TrialEffects of CPAP on "vascular" risk factors in patients with obstructive sleep apnea and arterial hypertension.
The aim of this study was to assess the effects of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) on arterial stiffness, central blood pressure, and reflected pulse wave characteristics in patients with severe obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and stage 2-3 arterial hypertension. ⋯ Effective CPAP for 3 weeks resulted in a significant additional decrease in office BP, ambulatory BP monitoring, central BP, and augmentation index, together with an improvement in arterial stiffness parameters, ie, cfPWV and AASI, in a group of hypertensive patients with OSA.