A 5-YEAR PROSPECTIVE, OBSERVATIONAL STUDY OF THE WITHDRAWAL OF ANTIHYPERTENSIVE TREATMENT IN ELDERLY PEOPLE

Citation
T. Ekbom et al., A 5-YEAR PROSPECTIVE, OBSERVATIONAL STUDY OF THE WITHDRAWAL OF ANTIHYPERTENSIVE TREATMENT IN ELDERLY PEOPLE, Journal of internal medicine, 235(6), 1994, pp. 581-588
Citations number
40
Categorie Soggetti
Medicine, General & Internal
ISSN journal
09546820
Volume
235
Issue
6
Year of publication
1994
Pages
581 - 588
Database
ISI
SICI code
0954-6820(1994)235:6<581:A5POSO>2.0.ZU;2-N
Abstract
Objectives. To observe blood pressure, cardiovascular events, and tota l mortality after withdrawing antihypertensive treatment for elderly p atients. Design. Multicentre observational study. Setting. Sweden, A 5 -year follow-up of 333 elderly hypertensive patients, aged 70-84 years (mean age 75.2 +/- SD 3.8 years, 68% females). In all, 74 out of the 333 patients (22%) died during the study period. Method. After withdra wal of the antihypertensive therapy, all patients started in the untre ated state and during the 5-year follow-up they could then either rema in in the untreated state, or be reverted to blood-pressure-lowering d rug treatment because of hypertension or other diseases, e.g. angina p ectoris, oedema, congestive heart failure, etc. Results. The probabili ty of remaining without treatment for 5 years was estimated to be 20%. During the state of no treatment the patients had a lower total morta lity risk than that of the general Swedish population, matched for age and sex. They also had a lower risk of cardiovascular events than tho se in the treated states. Markers indicating a successful withdrawal w ere monotherapy in low doses and relatively low blood pressure before withdrawal. Conclusion. These results suggest that with frequent check -ups, withdrawal of antihypertensive therapy in the elderly can be tri ed without increased risk of cardiovascular events.