Pseudoresistant Hypertension Research Articles

Identifying pseudo-resistant hypertension and optimizing diuretic therapy for confirmed resistant cases in primary care.

Approximately 10% of individuals with hypertension are expected to have resistant hypertension (RH). Many have pseudo-resistant hypertension (p-RH) due to a variety of factors. To date, the prevalence of p-RH and optimal diuretic therapy in primary care have not been studied. A retrospective chart review was conducted, including patients referred to the hypertension clinic at the Centre for Family Medicine (CFFM) Family Health Team in Kitchener, ON, from January 2010 to September 2020. Individuals ≥18 years old referred to clinic by their family physician or other health care provider with 2 consecutive blood pressure (BP) readings of ≥140/90 mmHg despite using ≥3 antihypertensive agents were included. Fifty-one patients taking ≥3 antihypertensive agents were referred during the study timeframe. Forty-one patients had ≥2 consecutive BP readings of ≥140/90 and were classified as having presumed RH. Of these, 24 patients (59%) had p-RH after BP was measured systematically in the hypertension clinic. Of the 17 with RH, 5 (29%) were prescribed optimal diuretic therapy upon referral. Most common clinic interventions included initiating or adjusting the dose of a diuretic (47%), adding a different antihypertensive agent (27%) or discontinuing an antihypertensive agent due to side effects (24%). To our knowledge, this is the first time that the prevalence of p-RH and optimal diuretic therapy have been studied in primary care. p-RH was common and diuretic therapy was underused in RH. This study suggests that p-RH is prevalent and diuretic therapy underused in primary care. Systematic BP measurement and optimization of diuretic therapy should be prioritized prior to specialist referral.

Resistant hypertension and the risk of major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events in outpatients

Objective: To investigate the prevalence and associated risk of cardiovascular event of resistant hypertension in treated outpatients. Methods: This study was a nationwide multi-center prospective cohort study. The participants were treated outpatients enrolled in the China Nationwide Ambulatory and Home Blood Pressure Registry study of 42 hospitals in 19 provinces across the country from August 2009 to October 2017. Apparent resistant hypertension was defined as uncontrolled office blood pressure (≥140/90 mmHg, 1 mmHg=0.133 kPa) in spite of the use of three antihypertensive drugs or controlled office blood pressure (<140/90 mmHg) with four antihypertensive drugs or more. Subjects diagnosed with uncontrolled office blood pressure were further subdivided as pseudo-resistant hypertension and true resistant hypertension based on 24 h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. The primary endpoint was fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events, which was a composite endpoint consisting of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular death, ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke, myocardial infarction, coronary artery revascularization, unstable angina, heart failure, and coronary artery stenosis≥50% confirmed by coronary angiography. Secondary outcomes included fatal and non-fatal stroke or cardiac events. Patients with controlled office blood pressure after taking only 1 or 2 antihypertensive drugs were included as control. Kaplan-Meier survival curves, log-rank test, and Cox proportional risk model were used to evaluate the risk of apparent refractory hypertension in relation to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular prognosis. Results: A total of 2 782 treated hypertensive patients, aged (58.1±12.3) years were enrolled, including 1 403 (50.4%) men. The prevalence of apparent and true resistant hypertension was 15.1% (420/2 782) and 10.5% (293/2 782), respectively. Among patients with apparent resistant hypertension, during a median of 5 years follow-up, the cumulative incidence rate was 28.2, 11.2 and 19.1 per 1 000 person-years for fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events (n=58), stroke (n=24) and cardiac events (n=40), respectively. The Kaplan-Meier curve and log-rank test showed that those patients with true resistant hypertension, had the highest cumulative incidence rate of fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events, stroke, and cardiac events. Multivariable Cox regression analyses showed that true resistant hypertension was associated with a significantly higher risk of fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events (HR=1.73, 95%CI 1.17-2.56, P=0.006) and stroke (HR=2.81, 95%CI 1.53-5.17, P=0.001). Conclusion: Resistant hypertension, especially true resistant hypertension, is associated with a higher risk of fatal and non-fatal cardiac and cerebrovascular events.

The Global Burden of Resistant Hypertension and Potential Treatment Options.

Resistant hypertension (RH) is defined as systolic blood pressure (SBP) or diastolic blood pressure (DBP) that remains .140 mmHg or .90 mmHg, respectively, despite an appropriate lifestyle and the use of optimal or maximally tolerated doses of a three-drug combination, including a diuretic. This definition encompasses the category of controlled RH, defined as the presence of blood pressure (BP) effectively controlled by four or more antihypertensive agents, as well as refractory hypertension, referred to as uncontrolled BP despite five or more drugs of different classes, including a diuretic. To confirm RH presence, various causes of pseudo-resistant hypertension (such as improper BP measurement techniques and poor medication adherence) and secondary hypertension must be ruled out. Inadequate BP control should be confirmed by out-of-office BP measurement. RH affects about 5% of the hypertensive population and is associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Once RH presence is confirmed, patient evaluation includes identification of contributing factors such as lifestyle issues or interfering drugs/substances and assessment of hypertension-mediated organ damage. Management of RH comprises lifestyle interventions and optimisation of current medication therapy. Additional drugs should be introduced sequentially if BP remains uncontrolled and renal denervation can be considered as an additional treatment option. However, achieving optimal BP control remains challenging in this setting. This review aims to provide an overview of RH, including its epidemiology, pathophysiology, diagnostic work-up, as well as the latest therapeutic developments.

Resident-led improvement project to screen for primary hyperaldosteronism in patients with resistant hypertension in an outpatient clinic

Clinical practice guidelines recommend screening for primary hyperaldosteronism (PH) in patients with resistant hypertension. However, screening rates are low in the outpatient setting. We sought to increase screening rates for...

TREAT TRIAL: MULTI-CENTER CROSS-SECTIONAL TREATMENT EVALUATION OF APPARENT RESISTANT HYPERTENSION IN BELGIUM

Objective: The goal of the TREAT study is to evaluate the prevalence of apparent treatment-resistant hypertension (aRHT) in a Belgian setting and to evaluate which determining factor of pseudo-resistant hypertension contributes the most to this prevalence: white coat hypertension (WCH), underdosing of adequate drugs or poor adherence to prescribed medicines. Design and method: TREAT is a single-visit, multicentric, non-interventional, cross-sectional survey. Inclusion criteria were the following: patients over 18 years old receiving 3 or more antihypertensive molecules and referred to specialized hospital centres for aRHT. The data were collected according to the patient’s medical records. Self-reported adherence to antihypertensive treatment was collected and a Hill-bone medication adherence scale was also proposed. Results: A total of 232 patients were included. Mean anti-hypertensive treatment duration was 10.6(±9.1) years. Patients were treated with a mean of 3.8(±1.1) antihypertensive molecules and 2.8(±1.1) antihypertensive pills. Only 48.5% of the aRHT patients were treated with the triple therapy recommended by the 2023 ESH hypertension guidelines (i.e. renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitor (RAASi), calcium channel blocker (CCB) and diuretic), and only 29.1% of patients were treated with the maximal recommended dose. Inadequate dosing was mostly present with diuretics, only 60% of patients was treated with at least half the maximum dose of a diuretic. WCH was present in 11% of patients in whose ambulatory BP measurements were available in records (n=136). Therapeutic adherence was self-reported as poor or moderate in 17.6% of patients (n=41). The Hill-bone medication adherence scale (n=140, 60.4%) showed a mean score of 12(±4.2) (good adherence). In this cohort, 31.8% of patients seemed to have true resistant hypertension. Conclusions: Among patients referred to specialized centres for aRHT, about 2/3 of patients have in reality pseudo-resistant hypertension. Whereas WCH and poor adherence seems to be limited in our dataset, many patients were polymedicated with non-recommended combinations of antihypertensive molecules in 1 out of 2 patients, with inadequate dosing in 2 out of 3 patients. Pseudo-resistant hypertension seems in our cohort to be mainly related to under-use of triple combination therapy and most likely also due to underdosing.

Resistant hypertension: challenges in everyday practice.

Resistant hypertension is defined as not achieving sufficient control of blood pressure (BP), that is, maintaining BP values equal to or above 140/90 mm Hg when using 3 antihypertensive drugs, including diuretics, properly combined and at maximum doses. The uncontrolled treated hypertension should be confirmed in out‑of‑office BP measurements, preferably with 24‑hour ambulatory BP monitoring. Demographic and clinical characteristics indicate that patients with resistant hypertension are older than the general population of patients with arterial hypertension and more often suffer from comorbidities. When resistant hypertension is suspected, it is necessary to assess whether optimal pharmacotherapy has been prescribed, including appropriate combinations of antihypertensive drugs and diuretics at appropriate doses. It is also important to exclude parallel use of drugs that may have unfavorable interactions leading to an increase in BP. A common cause of pseudoresistant hypertension is a patient's failure to comply with therapeutic recommendations, including a lack of lifestyle changes and nonadherence to the prescribed medication regimen. An important step in management of resistant hypertension is targeted screening with diagnostic tests for secondary hypertension. Expanding of the drug therapy beyond a 3‑drug regimen should include a mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist, in particular spironolactone. In selected patients, device‑based hypertension treatment might be considered.

Sympathetic Neural Mechanisms in Hypertension: Recent Insights.

To examine published and unpublished data documenting the role of sympathetic neural factors in the pathogenesis of different hypertensive phenotypes. These phenotypes relate to attended or unattended blood pressure measurements, to nighttime blood pressure profile alterations, and to resistant, pseudoresistant, and refractory hypertension. Results of original clinical studies as well as of recent meta-analyses based on the behavior of different sympathetic biomarkers in various hypertensive forms will be also discussed. Studies performed in the past decade have shown that office blood pressure measurements, including in recent years those characterizing unattended or attended blood pressure assessment, are associated with profound changes in the behavior of different sympathetic biomarkers. This is the case for the clinical hypertensive phenotypes characterized by alterations in the nocturnal blood pressure profile and by sleep duration abnormalities. This is also the case for the clinical conditions defined as resistant, refractory, and pseudoresistant hypertension. Data reviewed in the present paper highlight the relevance of sympathetic neural factors in the development and progression of different clinical hypertensive phenotypes. This suggests that a common hallmark of the majority of the essential hypertensive states detectable in current clinical practice is represented by the alteration in the sympathetic blood pressure control.

Commentary on “Clinical Profile and Management Approach of Patients Diagnosed with Resistant Hypertension in the Philippine General Hospital”

This descriptive cohort conducted at the Philippine General Hospital focused on the burden of resistant hypertension in the institution’s hypertension clinic. Resistant hypertension is generally defined as uncontrolled blood pressure despite maximum doses of three anti hypertensives (including a diuretic) after ruling out pseudo-resistant hypertension (e.g., improper measurements, white coat effect, poor adherence to medications). In this cohort, the authors were able to identify 51 (from 93) patients with resistant hypertension.

Angio-computed tomography reveals differences in the anatomy of renal arteries in resistant hypertension patients qualified for renal denervation versus pseudo-resistant hypertensive subjects.

Renal denervation is a novel therapeutic option in resistant hypertension (RHT). The anatomy of renal arteries and the presence of additional renal arteries are important determinants of the effect of the procedure. The aim of this study was to assess the anatomy of renal arteries using angio- -computed tomography in patients with RHT, who were qualified for renal denervation. We analyzed angio-computed tomography scans of the renal arteries of 72 patients qualified for renal denervation. We divided the study population into two groups: a resistant hypertension group (RHT) and a pseudo-resistant hypertension group (NRHT). The biochemical and endocrine diagnostic procedures were performed to rule out secondary hypertension. We analyzed the morphology, the diameters, and the number of additional renal arteries. In both groups, we found additional renal arteries (ARN). ARN were more frequent in RHT than in patients with non-resistant hypertension (48.4% vs. 24.3%; p < 0.05). They were present more often on the left side (18 left side vs. 7 right side). The ARNs were longer than main renal artery - left side 41.7 ± 12.1 mm vs. 51.1 ± 11.8 mm, right side 49.2 ± 14.5 mm vs. 60 ± ± 8.6 mm, respectively (p < 0.05). The diameters of ARN were similar in both groups. In the group of patients with RHT the number of ARN was significantly higher (p < 0.04). The ARNs occur more often in patients with RHT. It seems that there is no connection between the resistance of hypertension and the diameters of renal arteries.

JS-ISH-KSH-2: DIAGNOSTIC APPROACH TO PSEUDO-RESISTANT HYPERTENSION

The lecture will discuss the most common types of pseudo-resistant hypertension. It will highlight the recent advances in this area of clinical research and the proposed strategy to exclusion of pseudo-resistant hypertension.

PSUN115 Features of Metabolic and Hemodynamic Parameters in Obese Patients with True and Pseudo-Resistant Hypertension

Abstract Given the negative contribution of obesity-associated metabolic disorders to the formation of cardiovascular complications, adequate blood pressure (BP) control is very important in patients with arterial hypertension (AH) and obesity comorbidity. Objective to conduct a comparative assessment between metabolic and hemodynamic parametersinobese patients with true and pseudo-resistant AH. Methods The study included 302 patients with uncontrolled AH and obesity. Initial treatment efficacy was assessed 3 months after dual therapy was administered. Those patients who did not reach target BP in dual therapy were transferred to triple therapy. Among patients who received triple therapy, 69 people did not reach target BP (they received the fourth drug spironolactone). All patients were additionally examined 6 months after the initiation of antihypertensive therapy. Results A comparative assessment of BP levels was carried out between non-resistant and resistant patients: at the initial stage of enrolling patients, there was no significant difference in BP between non-resistant and subsequently resistant patients; after 3 months of follow-up (after prescribing double fixed combinations), there was a significant difference in the indicators of both office and out-of-office BP in resistance and non-resistance; despite the achievement of target BP levels after 6 months of therapy, in the presence of resistance, both office, home and most ABPM indicators were significantly higher than in non-resistance. An assessment of the possible causes of pseudo-resistance showed that most often, pseudo-resistance was observed in patients with non-compliance with recommendations to increase physical activity (55.26%) and reduce the calorie intake of food consumed (44.77%), as well as with poor compliance to the prescribed therapy (42.11%). At the same time, high salt intake, chronic kidney disease, obstructive sleep apnoea, and the white-coat phenomenon also contributed to the formation of pseudo-resistance. More than half of the patients (63.16%) had a combination of several factors that could contribute to the formation of pseudo-resistance. If at the stage of enrolling patients into the study and 3 months after the start of therapy there was no significant difference in BP levels between true and pseudo-resistant patients, then after 6 months of antihypertensive therapy, patients with true resistance had significantly higher levels of office SBP (p&amp;lt;0.01) and 24 h average SBP according to ABPM data (p&amp;lt;0.05) compared with pseudo-resistant patients. Obese patients with true resistance had also significantly lower BMI and LDL-cholesterol (p&amp;lt;0.05) as well as higher levels of aldosterone and SBP (p&amp;lt;0.05) compared with pseudo-resistance. Conclusions Even when target BP levels in antihypertensive therapy are achieved, obese resistant patients are characterized by higher levels of office and out-of-office BP, compared with non-resistance. Compared with pseudo-resistance, the presence of true resistance in obesity is associated with higher SBP and aldosteron levels, as well as lower BMI and LDL-cholesterol. Presentation: Sunday, June 12, 2022 12:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

A Critical Review of Medication Adherence in Hypertension: Barriers and Facilitators Clinicians Should Consider.

Hypertension is a global public health problem, and its prevalence is increasing worldwide. Impacting all human societies and socioeconomic strata, it remains the major modifiable risk factor for global burden of cardiovascular disease all-cause mortality and the leading cause of loss of disability-adjusted life years. Despite increased awareness, the rate of blood pressure control remains unsatisfactory, particularly in low- to middle-income countries. Apparent treatment-resistant hypertension is associated with worse adverse health outcomes. It includes both true resistant and pseudo-resistant hypertension, which requires out-of-office blood pressure monitoring to exclude white-coat effect and confirmation of adherence to the agreed recommended antihypertensive therapy. The depth of medication non-adherence remains poorly recognized among medical practitioners, thus presenting an underestimated modifiable risk factor. Medication non-adherence is a complex and multidimensional variable with three quantifiable phases: initiation, implementation, and discontinuation, collectively called persistence. Non-adherence can be both intentional and non-intentional and usually involves several interconnected factors. Persistence declines over time in the treatment of chronic diseases like hypertension. The risk is higher in patients with new diagnosis, poor insurance status, polypharmacy, and multiple comorbidities, particularly psychiatric disorders. The World Health Organization divides the contributing factors impacting adherence into five categories. Screening and detection for medication non-adherence are challenging due to its dynamic nature and potential white-coat effect. Easy-to-conduct screening methods have low reliability and validity, whereas more reliable and valid methods are costly and difficult to perform. Medication non-adherence is associated with poor clinical outcome and potential negative impact on health-care costs. Evaluation of adherence should become an integral part of assessment of patients treated for hypertension. Medication adherence can significantly improve with a patient-centered approach, non-judgmental communication skills, and collaborative multidisciplinary management, including engagement of the patients in their care by self-blood pressure monitoring.

Lipid spectrum changes and blood pressure levels in obese patients with true and pseudo-resistant hypertension

Lipid spectrum changes and blood pressure levels in obese patients with true and pseudo-resistant hypertension

Chaos, resistant and pseudoresistant hypertension “Thousands of butterflies in the BP control system”

In Cardiology, we classify hypertensive patients as resistant to treatment, pseudo-resistant, or hyperreactivity subjects, including the WCH (white-coat or masked hypertension). Compliance is another cause of failure in antihypertensive therapy. Hypertension is a complex clinical syndrome and many variables that interfere in BP depend on “The Theory of Chaos” and are not considered. We do not know how many variations the Chaos on BP levels can be. Still, as we have around 30% of “uncontrolled” patients, the Chaos and effects on BP regulation as taking part in this high rates of “uncontrolled” subjects. Chaos is a complicated issue to study, but multi-professional efforts must keep the attention to this relevant “cause” of hypertension. Finally, Chaos theory is well known and accepted in Maths, Economy, Philosophy, Meteorology, Ecology, and other areas of knowledge, but not in the Health area. Crescent attention to Chaos may help better understand some mechanisms and clinical expression of Chaos in pseudo-resistant hypertension and correlated hypertensive syndromes.

Resistant hypertension

Background: Resistant hypertension is a common medical challenge facing clinicians and specialists. Although, the prevalence is currently unknown but various clinical trials have suggested that this problem is not rare. Resistant hypertension is blood pressure that remains above goal despite the use of at least three antihypertensive agents including a diuretic. It is a subtype of hypertension that increases the risk of cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and kidney disease. However, it is important to distinguish between pseudo-resistant hypertension and apparent hypertension from true resistant hypertension as they are often misdiagnosed.&#x0D; Objectives: This review focuses on resistant hypertension, its pathophysiology and established therapy.&#x0D; Methodology: Relevant articles used for this review covered a period of 2008-2022 using search engines and databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar.&#x0D; Main observation: Evaluation of patients with true resistant hypertension includes appropriate blood pressure measurement, screening for causes of secondary hypertension and screening for interfering medications. Management of resistant hypertension that has proved successful includes non-pharmacological approach like lifestyle modification and optimization of pharmacological agents, often including the use of mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist.&#x0D; Conclusion: Considering the future management of resistant hypertension, a bunch of new device-based therapies are under effective development. Of these, renal denervation and carotid baroreflex activation are two potential devices for the significant reduction of blood pressure. However, further study is necessary before these devices can be approved for the routine treatment of resistant hypertension.&#x0D; Keywords: Aldosterone; Cardiovascular disease; Resistant Hypertension; Therapy.

Identifying and treating resistant hypertension in PRECISION: A randomized long-term clinical trial with aprocitentan.

The design and baseline data of the PRECISION study, which evaluates the effect of the dual endothelin receptor antagonist aprocitentan on blood pressure (BP) in patients with resistant hypertension (RHT) are presented. The study is a blinded, randomized, parallel‐group Phase 3 study and its three‐part design assesses the short‐term and sustained long‐term effects of aprocitentan on BP. Results are expected in 2022.Patients with uncontrolled BP (measured as unattended automated office BP) despite the use of three or more antihypertensive medications for at least 1 year were screened. They were switched to a single‐tablet triple fixed combination antihypertensive therapy for at least 4 weeks before entering a single‐blind placebo run‐in period. The 4‐week placebo run‐in period further excluded placebo responders. The randomization period consisted of three sequential parts: (1) a 4‐week double‐blind part with aprocitentan 12.5 mg, 25 mg, or placebo (1:1:1 ratio); (2) a 32‐week single‐blind part with aprocitentan 25 mg; and (3) a 12‐week randomized withdrawal part with aprocitentan 25 mg or placebo (1:1 ratio). The purpose was to demonstrate the BP lowering effect of aprocitentan in RHT (Part 1) and the persistence of this effect (Parts 2 and 3).Out of 1965 screened patients, 730 were randomized resulting in an overall inclusion failure rate of 62.8%. The most common reason for exclusion (44.4% of all screened patients) was failure to meet the BP inclusion criteria. These results underline the high proportion of pseudoresistant hypertension among patients referred for RHT.

Resistant arterial hypertension: is it really so or have we missed something?

This publication discusses the relevance of the problem of blood pressure control in patients with resistance to drug therapy in real clinical practice. Data on the prevalence of true resistant arterial hypertension and clinical features of patients are presented. At the same time, taking into account the wider prevalence of patients with pseudo resistant arterial hypertension, special attention is paid to diagnostic algorithms in the publication, and the criteria for excluding pseudo resistant arterial hypertension are analyzed in detail. Presented are modern ideas about the most common secondary causes of arterial hypertension, such as obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, the possibility of correcting this condition and the choice of drug therapy. For this publication, modern recommendations were used in the strategy for choosing the optimal antihypertensive therapy, taking into account the pharmacokinetic properties and the possibility of personalized choice in various clinical situations. We analyzed data on the benefits of antihypertensive therapy using fixed combinations to increase adherence to therapy with a blood pressure control strategy and reduce the risk of cardiovascular risks. Various search engines were used to search for data and material: PubMed, Google Academy, Elsevier, information resources of the Russian Society of Cardiology and the European Society of Cardiology.

Metabolic and hemodynamic disorders in obese patients with true and pseudo-resistant hypertension

Metabolic and hemodynamic disorders in obese patients with true and pseudo-resistant hypertension

Pseudo and resistant hypertension: A chaotic perspective.

Systemic blood pressure (BP) may oscillate for homeostatic needs (equilibrium by constancy) or just as shifts in other intrinsic and extrinsic variables known as allostatic changes. This transitory pressure often rises alerts physicians to out‐of‐control hypertension or even hypertensive crisis. There is a very complex theory underlying these stochastic phenomena, which physicists and mathematicians translate into a single word: chaos. These changes happen according to a stochastic probabilistic pattern that presumes chaotic but somewhat predictable and nonlinear modeling of BP‐related dynamics as a mathematical approach. Based on the chaos theory, small changes at the initial BP (baseline overtime) values could disturb the homeostasis leading to extreme BP chaotic shifts. These almost insignificant oscillations may also affect other variables and systems, leading to the misdiagnosis of hypertension, “out‐of‐control” BP levels, and resistant hypertension (RHT). Thus, these unpredictable and transient increases in BP values may be improperly diagnosed as the white coat and masked or resistant hypertension. Indeed, the interference of the chaos in any phenotype of (true or false) hard to control BP is not considered in clinical settings. This review provides some basic concepts on chaos theory and BP regulation. Besides pseudoresistant hypertension (lack of adherence, circadian variations, and others (white‐coat, masked, early morning effects or hypertension), chaotic changes can be responsible for out‐of‐control hypertension.

Sympathetic nervous system and hypertension: New evidences.

Evidences collected in the past few years have strengthened the concept that the sympathetic nervous system plays a primary role in the development and progression of the hypertensive state, starting from the early stage, and in the hypertension-related cardiovascular diseases. Several pathophysiological mechanisms are involved. Among them the genetic background, the immune system in conjunction with sympathetic activation. The present review will briefly discuss the importance of the above mentioned mechanisms in the development of hypertension. The paper will also examine the sympathetic mechanisms underlying attended vs unattended blood pressure measurements as well as their role in resistant vs pseudo-resistant hypertension. Finally evidence from recent meta-analysis on the relevance of sympathetic nerve traffic activation in the pathogenesis of hypertension will be briefly discussed.