News - Hypertension Week of May 25, 2003/ Vol. 2 No. 21

Study: Diuretics Best of Anti-Hypertensives in Preventing Cardiovascular Problems

Low-dose diuretics are more effective at preventing cardiovascular health problems than any other blood-pressure medication, according to a study reported in the May 21 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Researchers studied 42 previous clinical trials that followed 192,478 participants for an average of three to four years to see which treatments for high blood pressure were associated with reduced risks of heart attacks, strokes, heart failure and death.

Since 1993, low-dose diuretics and beta-blockers have been recommended as first-line drug therapy for hypertension by the U.S. Joint National Committee on the Prevention, Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Pressure.

The researchers found that low-dose diuretics were significantly better than each of the other blood-pressure medications for preventing at least one major cardiovascular outcome. No other medication was significantly better than low-dose diuretics for preventing any cardiovascular outcome.

"If you are on treatment for high blood pressure, and if you are not taking a low-dose diuretic, it is reasonable to ask your physician why not?," said study author Dr. Bruce M. Psaty, co-director of the University of Washington's Cardiovascular Health Research Unit.

Other sources: University of Washington