The Hygia Chronotherapy Trial, conducted within the clinical primary care setting, was designed to test whether bedtime in comparison to usual upon awakening hypertension therapy exerts better ...cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk reduction.
In this multicentre, controlled, prospective endpoint trial, 19 084 hypertensive patients (10 614 men/8470 women, 60.5 ± 13.7 years of age) were assigned (1:1) to ingest the entire daily dose of ≥1 hypertension medications at bedtime (n = 9552) or all of them upon awakening (n = 9532). At inclusion and at every scheduled clinic visit (at least annually) throughout follow-up, ambulatory blood pressure (ABP) monitoring was performed for 48 h. During the 6.3-year median patient follow-up, 1752 participants experienced the primary CVD outcome (CVD death, myocardial infarction, coronary revascularization, heart failure, or stroke). Patients of the bedtime, compared with the upon-waking, treatment-time regimen showed significantly lower hazard ratio-adjusted for significant influential characteristics of age, sex, type 2 diabetes, chronic kidney disease, smoking, HDL cholesterol, asleep systolic blood pressure (BP) mean, sleep-time relative systolic BP decline, and previous CVD event-of the primary CVD outcome 0.55 (95% CI 0.50-0.61), P < 0.001 and each of its single components (P < 0.001 in all cases), i.e. CVD death 0.44 (0.34-0.56), myocardial infarction 0.66 (0.52-0.84), coronary revascularization 0.60 (0.47-0.75), heart failure 0.58 (0.49-0.70), and stroke 0.51 (0.41-0.63).
Routine ingestion by hypertensive patients of ≥1 prescribed BP-lowering medications at bedtime, as opposed to upon waking, results in improved ABP control (significantly enhanced decrease in asleep BP and increased sleep-time relative BP decline, i.e. BP dipping) and, most importantly, markedly diminished occurrence of major CVD events.
ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT00741585.
Objectives We investigated whether reduced cardiovascular risk is more related to the progressive decrease of asleep or awake blood pressure. Background Independent studies have concluded that ...elevated sleep-time blood pressure is a better predictor of cardiovascular risk than awake or 24-h blood pressure means. However, the impact on cardiovascular risk of changes in these ambulatory blood pressure characteristics has not been properly investigated. Methods We prospectively studied 3,344 subjects (1,718 men and 1,626 women), 52.6 ± 14.5 years of age, during a median follow-up of 5.6 years. Those with hypertension at baseline were randomized to ingest all their prescribed hypertension medications upon awakening or ≥1 of them at bedtime. Blood pressure was measured for 48 h at baseline and again annually or more frequently (quarterly) if treatment adjustment was required. Results With data collected at baseline, when asleep blood pressure was adjusted by awake mean, only the former was a significant predictor of outcome in a Cox proportional hazards model also adjusted for sex, age, and diabetes. Analyses of changes in ambulatory blood pressure during follow-up revealed a 17% reduction in cardiovascular risk for each 5-mm Hg decrease in asleep systolic blood pressure mean (p < 0.001), independently of changes in any other ambulatory blood pressure parameter. Conclusions The sleep-time blood pressure mean is the most significant prognostic marker of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Most importantly, the progressive decrease in asleep blood pressure, a novel therapeutic target that requires proper patient evaluation by ambulatory monitoring, was the most significant predictor of event-free survival. (Prognostic Value of Ambulatory Blood Pressure Monitoring in the Prediction of Cardiovascular Events and Effects of Chronotherapy in Relation to Risk the MAPEC Study; NCT00295542 )
Background and aims
An early meta‐analysis testing the concurrent validity of the Alcohol Purchase Task (APT), a measure of alcohol's relative reinforcing value, reported mixed associations, but ...predated a large number of studies. This systematic review and meta‐analysis sought to: (1) estimate the relationships between trait‐based alcohol demand indices from the APT and multiple alcohol indicators, (2) test several moderators and (3) analyze small study effects.
Methods
A meta‐analysis of 50 cross‐sectional studies in four databases (n = 18 466, females = 43.32%). Sex, year of publication, number of APT prices and index transformations (logarithmic, square root or none) were considered as moderators. Small study effects were examined by using the Begg–Mazumdar, Egger's and Duval & Tweedie's trim‐and‐fill tests. Alcohol indicators were quantity of alcohol use, number of heavy drinking episodes, alcohol‐related problems and hazardous drinking. APT indices were intensity (i.e. consumption at zero cost), elasticity (i.e. sensitivity to increases in costs), Omax (i.e. maximum expenditure), Pmax (i.e. price associated to Omax) and breakpoint (i.e. price at which consumption ceases).
Results
All alcohol demand indices were significantly associated with all alcohol‐related outcomes (r = 0.132–0.494), except Pmax, which was significantly associated with alcohol‐related problems only (r = 0.064). The greatest associations were evinced between intensity in relation to alcohol use, hazardous drinking and heavy drinking and between Omax and alcohol use. All the tested moderators emerged as significant moderators. Evidence of small‐study effects was limited.
Conclusions
The Alcohol Purchase Task appears to have concurrent validity in alcohol research. Intensity and Omax are the most relevant indices to account for alcohol involvement.
OBJECTIVE: We prospectively investigated in hypertensive patients with type 2 diabetes if bedtime treatment with ≥1 hypertension medications exerts better blood pressure control and cardiovascular ...risk reduction than conventional therapy, in which all medications are ingested in the morning. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: We conducted a prospective, randomized, open-label, blinded end point trial on 448 hypertensive patients with type 2 diabetes, 255 men/193 women, mean ± SD age 62.5 ± 10.8 years, randomized to ingest all their prescribed hypertension medications upon awakening or ≥1 of them at bedtime. Ambulatory blood pressure was measured for 48 h at baseline and again annually or even more frequently (quarterly) after adjustments in treatment. RESULTS: After a median follow-up of 5.4 years, patients ingesting ≥1 hypertension medications at bedtime showed a significantly lower cardiovascular risk (adjusted by age and sex) than subjects ingesting all medications upon awakening (hazard ratio 0.33 95% CI 0.21-0.54; P < 0.001). The difference between groups in the adjusted risk of major events (cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, and stroke) was also statistically significant (0.25 0.10-0.61; P = 0.003). Patients treated at bedtime showed significantly lower sleep time blood pressure mean and higher prevalence of controlled ambulatory blood pressure (62.5 vs. 50.9%; P = 0.013). There was a significant 12% cardiovascular risk reduction per each 5 mmHg decrease in asleep systolic blood pressure during follow-up (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with diabetes, treatment with ≥1 hypertension medications at bedtime, compared with all medications upon waking, resulted in improved ambulatory blood pressure control and significantly reduced cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.
A quinine‐derived thiourea organocatalyst promoted the highly enantioselective addition of naphthols and activated phenols to ketimines derived from isatins. The reaction afforded chiral ...3‐amino‐2‐oxindoles with a quaternary stereocenter in high yields (up to 99 %) with excellent enantioselectivity (up to 99 % ee). To the best of our knowledge, this transformation is the first highly enantioselective addition of naphthols to ketimines.
Gentle persuasion: A quinine‐derived thiourea organocatalyst was found to promote the asymmetric addition of naphthols and activated phenols to ketimines derived from isatins (see scheme; Boc=tert‐butoxycarbonyl). The reaction under mild conditions afforded chiral 3‐amino‐2‐oxindoles containing a quaternary stereocenter in high yields (up to 99 %) with excellent enantioselectivity (up to 99 % ee).
Therapeutic strategies in resistant hypertension include adding another drug or changing drugs in search for a better synergic combination. Most patients, however, receive all of their drugs in a ...single morning dose. We have evaluated the impact on the circadian pattern of blood pressure on modifying the time of treatment without increasing the number of prescribed drugs. We studied 250 hypertensive patients who were receiving 3 antihypertensive drugs in a single morning dose. Patients were randomly assigned to 1 of 2 groups according to the modification in their treatment strategy: changing 1 of the drugs but keeping all 3 in the morning or the same approach but administering the new drug at bedtime. Blood pressure was measured for 48 hours before and after 12 weeks of treatment. There was no effect on ambulatory blood pressure when all of the drugs were taken on awakening. The baseline prevalence of nondipping (79%) was slightly increased after treatment (86%; P=0.131). The ambulatory blood pressure reduction was statistically significant (9.4/6.0 mm Hg for systolic/diastolic blood pressure; P<0.001) with 1 drug at bedtime. This reduction was larger in the nocturnal than in the diurnal mean of blood pressure. Thus, whereas only 16% of the patients in this group were dippers at baseline, 57% were dippers after therapy (P<0.001). Results indicate that, in resistant hypertension, time of treatment may be more important for blood pressure control and for the proper modeling of the circadian blood pressure pattern than just changing the drug combination.
Time of ingestion of hypertension medications can affect circadian patterns of BP, but whether this translates into an effect on clinical outcomes is unknown. Here, in an open-label trial, we ...randomly assigned 661 patients with CKD either to take all prescribed hypertension medications upon awakening or to take at least one of them at bedtime. We measured 48-hour ambulatory BP at baseline and 3 months after any adjustment in treatment or, at the least, annually. After a median follow-up of 5.4 years, patients who took at least one BP-lowering medication at bedtime had an adjusted risk for total cardiovascular events (a composite of death, myocardial infarction, angina pectoris, revascularization, heart failure, arterial occlusion of lower extremities, occlusion of the retinal artery, and stroke) that was approximately one-third that of patients who took all medications upon awakening (adjusted HR 0.31; 95% CI 0.21 to 0.46; P < 0.001). Bedtime dosing demonstrated a similar significant reduction in risk for a composite outcome of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, and stroke (adjusted HR 0.28; 95% CI 0.13 to 0.61; P < 0.001). Furthermore, patients on bedtime treatment had a significantly lower mean sleep-time BP and a greater proportion demonstrated control of their ambulatory BP (56% versus 45%, P = 0.003). Each 5-mmHg decrease in mean sleep-time systolic BP was associated with a 14% reduction in the risk for cardiovascular events during follow-up (P < 0.001). In conclusion, among patients with CKD and hypertension, taking at least one antihypertensive medication at bedtime improves control of BP and reduces the risk for cardiovascular events.
The impact of ambulatory resistant hypertension (ARH) on the occurrence of heart failure (HF) is not yet completely known. We performed for the first time a meta-analysis, by using published data or ...available data from published databases, on the risk of HF in ARH. Patients with ARH (24-h BP ≥ 130/80 mmHg during treatment with ≥3 drugs) were compared with those with controlled hypertension (CH, clinic BP < 140/90 mmHg and 24-h BP < 130/80 mmHg regardless of the number of drugs used), white coat uncontrolled resistant hypertension (WCURH, clinic BP ≥ 140/90 mmHg and 24-h BP < 130/80 mmHg in treated patients) and ambulatory nonresistant hypertension (ANRH, 24-h BP ≥ 130/80 mmHg during therapy with ≤2 drugs). We identified six studies/databases including 21,365 patients who experienced 692 HF events. When ARH was compared with CH, WCURH, or ANRH, the overall adjusted hazard ratio for HF was 2.32 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.45-3.72), 1.72 (95% CI 1.36-2.17), and 2.11 (95% CI 1.40-3.17), respectively, (all P < 0.001). For some comparisons a moderate heterogeneity was found. Though we did not find variables that could explain the heterogeneity, sensitivity analyses demonstrated that none of the studies had a significant influential effect on the overall estimate. When we evaluated the potential presence of publication bias and small-study effect and adjusted for missing studies identified by Duval and Tweedie's method the estimates were slightly lower but remained significant. This meta-analysis shows that treated hypertensive patients with ARH are at approximately twice the risk of developing HF than other ambulatory BP phenotypes.