Association Between Blood Pressure Lowering and Quality of Life by Treatment of Azilsartan.

The authors assessed the effects of switching from a conventional angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB) to azilsartan on blood pressure (BP) and health-related quality of life (HR-QOL) in patients with uncontrolled hypertension. Key eligibility criteria were uncontrolled hypertension treated for ≥ 1 month with an ARB, excluding azilsartan, that did not reach the target BP. We recruited 147 patients (64 males and 83 females; mean ± standard deviation age 73 ± 15 years). Azilsartan reduced both systolic and diastolic BP significantly, from 151 ± 16/82 ± 12 to 134 ± 17/73 ± 12 mm Hg, 3 months after switching. Although scores on the comprehensive QOL scale, the EuroQoL 5 dimensions (EQ5D), and the simplified menopausal index (SMI) did not change, the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) score improved significantly, and there was a significant association between the change in the GDS score and systolic BP lowering (r = 0.2554, P = 0.030). The Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) improved significantly only in the female subgroup. Besides sufficient BP lowering activity, anti-hypertensive treatment with azilsartan may have a favorable impact on depression in geriatric patients with uncontrolled hypertension.

Body fluid regulation via chronic inhibition of sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 in patients with heart failure: a post hoc analysis of the CANDLE trial.

BACKGROUND: In patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) and type 2 diabetes (T2D), sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibition improves cardiorenal outcomes, but details of the effects on distinct subsets of body fluid volume remain incomplete. METHODS: This was a post hoc analysis of patients with CHF and T2D in the CANDLE trial (UMIN000017669), an investigator-initiated, multi-center, randomized open-label trial that compared the effect of canagliflozin (100 mg, n = 113) with glimepiride (starting dose: 0.5 mg, n = 120) on changes in N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide. The estimated plasma volume (ePV, calculated with the Straus formula) and estimated extracellular volume (eEV, determined by the body surface area) were compared between treatment groups at weeks 4, 12, and 24. RESULTS: Among 233 patients analyzed, 166 (71.2%) had an ejection fraction (EF) > 50%. Reductions in ePV and eEV were observed only in the canagliflozin group until week 12 (change from baseline at week 12, ePV; - 7.63%; 95% confidence interval [CI], - 10.71 to - 4.55%, p < 0.001, eEV; - 123.15 mL; 95% CI, - 190.38 to - 55.92 mL, p < 0.001). While ePV stopped falling after week 12, eEV continued to fall until week 24 ([change from baseline at week 24] - [change from baseline at week 12], ePV; 1.01%; 95%CI, - 2.30-4.32%, p = 0.549, eEV; - 125.15 mL; 95% CI, - 184.35 to - 65.95 mL, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Maintenance of a modest reduction in ePV and continuous removal of eEV via chronic SGLT2 inhibition suggests that favorable body fluid regulation contributes to the cardiorenal benefits of SGLT2 inhibitors in patients with CHF, irrespective of EF. TRIAL REGISTRATION: UMIN000017669.

Effect of ipragliflozin on carotid intima-media thickness in patients with type 2 diabetes: a multicenter, randomized, controlled trial.

AIMS: To examine the effects of a 24-month treatment with ipragliflozin on carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) in type 2 diabetes patients. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this multicenter, prospective, randomized, open-label, and blinded-endpoint investigator-initiated clinical trial, adults with type 2 diabetes and haemoglobin A1C (HbA1c) of 6.0-10.0% (42-86 mmol/mol) were randomized equally to ipragliflozin (50 mg daily) and non-sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) inhibitor use of standard-care (control group) for type 2 diabetes and were followed-up to 24 months. The primary endpoint was the change in mean common carotid artery IMT (CCA-IMT) from baseline to 24 months. A total of 482 patients were equally allocated to the ipragliflozin (N = 241) and control (N = 241) groups, and 464 patients (median age 68 years, female 31.7%, median type 2 diabetes duration 8 years, median HbA1c 7.3%) were included in the analyses. For the primary endpoint, the changes in the mean CCA-IMT from baseline to 24 months were 0.0013 [95% confidence interval (CI), -0.0155-0.0182] mm and 0.0015 (95% CI, -0.0155-0.0184) mm in the ipragliflozin and control groups, respectively, with an estimated group difference (ipragliflozin-control) of -0.0001 mm (95% CI, -0.0191-0.0189; P = 0.989). A group difference in HbA1c change at 24 months was also non-significant between the treatment groups [-0.1% (95% CI, -0.2-0.1); P = 0.359]. CONCLUSION: Twenty-four months of ipragliflozin treatment did not affect carotid IMT status in patients with type 2 diabetes recruited in the PROTECT study, relative to the non-SGLT2 inhibitor-use standard care for type 2 diabetes.

Impact of febuxostat on visit-to-visit blood pressure variability: insights from the randomised PRIZE Study.

OBJECTIVES: Although uric acid lowering therapies, including xanthine oxidase (XO) inhibition, may reduce the absolute level of blood pressure (BP), the effect of XO inhibition on BP variability is largely unknown. The aim of the present analysis was to evaluate the impact of febuxostat, an XO inhibitor, on BP variability in a randomised trial setting. METHODS: This was a subanalysis of the PRIZE Study, a randomised trial to evaluate the potential effect of febuxostat on carotid intima-media thickness progression. Patients with hyperuricemia and carotid plaques were randomly assigned to the febuxostat or control group. During a 24-month period, office BP and pulse rate (PR) were measured ≥3 times. BP and PR variabilities were assessed with SD and coefficient of variation (CV). The effect of febuxostat on BP and PR variabilities was adjusted with age, sex and baseline BP or PR, expressed with 95% CIs. RESULTS: A total of 472 patients were included into the present subanalysis. During the 24-month follow-up period, the febuxostat group had a significantly lower adjusted mean systolic BP (128.4 (126.8-130.0) vs 130.7 (129.1-132.2) mm Hg, p=0.04) and CV of systolic BP (7.4 (6.7-8.0) vs 8.2 (7.6-8.8), p=0.04) than the control group. Adjusted SD of PR was also lower in the febuxostat group than their counterpart (5.95 (4.93-6.97) vs 7.33 (6.32-8.33), p=0.04). CONCLUSION: XO inhibition with febuxostat was associated with reduced visit-to-visit BP variability as well as reduced PR variability in patients with hyperuricemia and carotid plaques. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBERS: University Hospital Medical Information Network Clinical Trial Registry (UMIN000012911 and UMIN000041322).

Effect of canagliflozin on white blood cell counts in patients with type 2 diabetes and heart failure: A subanalysis of the randomized CANDLE trial.

AIMS/INTRODUCTION: Clinical evidence is lacking about the influence of sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitors on white blood cell (WBC) counts, a commonly used and widely available marker of inflammation. The aim of the present analysis was to assess the effect of canagliflozin relative to glimepiride on WBC counts. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a post-hoc subanalysis of the CANDLE trial (Effects of Canagliflozin in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes and Chronic Heart Failure: A Randomized Trial; UMIN000017669), an investigator-initiated, multicenter, open-label, randomized, controlled trial. A total of 233 patients with type 2 diabetes and concomitant heart failure were randomly assigned to either canagliflozin (n = 113) or glimepiride (n = 120) treatment for 24 weeks. Overall, patient baseline characteristics were as follows: mean ± standard deviation age, 68.6 ± 10.1 years; hemoglobin A1c, 7.0 ± 0.9%; left ventricular ejection fraction, 56.7 ± 14.4%; and median N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide, 252 pg/mL (interquartile range 96-563 pg/mL). The mean baseline WBC counts were 6704 cells/µL (95% confidence interval 6,362-7,047) in the canagliflozin group and 6322 cells/µL (95% confidence interval 5,991-6,654) in the glimepiride group. There were no significant differences between treatment groups in terms of changes in WBC counts from baseline to weeks 4 and 12. In contrast, a group difference (canagliflozin minus glimepiride) from baseline to week 24 was significant (mean difference - 456 cells/µL [95% confidence interval -774 to -139, P = 0.005]). CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that 24 weeks of treatment with canagliflozin, relative to glimepiride, reduced WBC counts in patients with type 2 diabetes and heart failure.

[A case of swallow syncope associated with Parkinson disease].

A 73-year-old woman with Parkinson disease (PD) was admitted to our hospital because of aspiration pneumonia. She presented with recurrent episodes of loss of consciousness with bradycardia while swallowing solid foods or fluids. Upper endoscopy revealed a normal esophagus without hiatus hernia, cancer, diverticulum, stenosis, or achalasia. Balloon inflation at the cervical esophagus induced sinus arrest and bradycardia followed by a loss of consciousness. The diagnosis of swallow syncope (SS) was confirmed. Esophageal dilatation and an increase in the esophageal pressure induced by esophageal peristaltic disturbance associated with PD can cause SS by stimulating the vagal reflex. In addition, the head-up tilt test showed that she had orthostatic hypotension, and the coefficients of variations of the R-R intervals on electrocardiograms and the total number of beat-to-beat differences greater than 50 mseconds in the RR interval during a 24 hour ambulatory electrocardiogram were normal. The cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction characterized by the presence of sympathetic inhibition and a preserved parasympathetic function might be involved in the onset of SS. Permanent pacemaker implantation improved her clinical symptoms. The recognition of SS on the examination of a PD patient with loss of consciousness while eating is important, as PD patients might develop SS due to peristaltic disturbance and autonomic dysfunction caused by PD.