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Background: Exaggerated variability of blood pressure (BP) poses additional stress on cardiovascular system independent of BP average value, increasing risk of target organ damage (HMOD) and cardiovascular events. We assessed the impact of visit-to-visit variability (VVV) of BP on development of cardiovascular events and HMOD., Methods: Standard deviation (SD) and coefficient of variability of mean SBP and DBP were calculated in 3555 patients from the Campania Salute Network registry, with available echocardiogram and more than six visits during follow-up. Values from the first visit were excluded. The impact of VVV of BP on cardiovascular events, and mediation of HMOD were assessed at final visit., Results: Mean number of visits was 11 ± 6 with mean interval between visits of 9.1 ± 3.7 months. Mean visit-to-visit SD during follow-up was 13 ± 5 for systolic and 8 ± 3 mmHg for DBP; coefficients of variability were 9.7 ± 3.5 and of 9.6 ± 3.2, respectively. In multivariable analysis, left ventricular mass at follow-up was correlated with systolic VVV of BP independently of significant effect of age, BMI, mean SBP during follow-up and initial left ventricular mass. Follow-up GFR was inversely associated with systolic and diastolic VVV, independently of significant effect of age, mean glucose and SBP during follow-up, and initial GFR. In Cox regression, high VVV of BP was also associated with increased risk of cardiovascular events (hazard ratio 1.49, 95% confidence interval 1.08-2.06, P = 0.015), independently of significant effect of HMOD., Conclusion: VVV is associated with prevalent HMOD and development of cardiovascular events, independently of mean BP value during follow-up and HMOD., (Copyright © 2021 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Results of the SPRINT study have influenced recent guidelines on arterial hypertension, in the identification of target SBP, but scarce attention has been paid to the consequences on DBP. However, there is evidence that reducing DBP too much can be harmful., Methods: We analyzed outcome in 4005 treated hypertensive patients (22% obesity, 8% diabetes and 21% current smoking habit) with target attended office SBP less than 140 mmHg, in relation to quintiles of DBP, cardiovascular risk profile and target organ damage (LV hypertrophy, carotid plaque and left atrial dilatation). Composite fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular event was the outcome variable in this analysis (stroke and myocardial infarction, sudden cardiac death, heart failure requiring hospitalization, transient ischemic attack, myocardial revascularization, de novo angina, carotid stenting and atrial fibrillation)., Results: Lower DBP was associated with greater proportion of women and diabetes, older age, decline in kidney function and greater values of LV mass index and left atrial volume and greater prevalence of carotid plaque (all 0.04 < P < 0.0001). The lowest quintile of DBP (74.1 ± 3.7 mmHg) was associated with 1.49 higher hazard of composite cardiovascular events, independently of significant effect of older age, female sex, LV hypertrophy and borderline effect of left atrial dilatation (0.04 < P < 0.001)., Conclusion: Increased risk associated with aggressive reduction of DBP should be balanced with the advantage of reducing aggressively SBP to predict the net benefit of antihypertensive treatment, especially in the oldest old individuals.

Background and Purpose: Myocardial mechano-energetic efficiency (MEE) can be easily approximated by the ratio of stroke work [i.e. SBP times stroke volume (SV)] to a rough estimate of energy consumption, the 'double product' [SBP times heart rate (HR)], which can be simplified as SV/HR. We evaluated whether MEE is associated with adverse prognosis in relation to the presence of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH)., Methods: Hypertensive participants of the Campania Salute Network (n = 12 353) without prevalent coronary or cerebrovascular disease and with ejection fraction more than 50% were cross-sectionally and longitudinally analyzed, over a median follow-up of 31 months. MEE was estimated by echocardiographic SV (z-derived)/(HR × 0.6)., Results: Due to the close relation with left ventricular mass (LVM) (P < 0.0001), MEE was normalized for LVM (MEEi) and divided into quartiles. The lowest quartile of MEEi (<0.29 ml/s per g) was considered 'low MEEi'. MEEi was greater in women than in men (P < 0.0001). Progressively lower MEEi was associated with older age, male sex, obesity, diabetes, LVH, concentric geometry, inappropriate LVM and diastolic dysfunction, more use of antihypertensive therapy, and higher BP (all P < 0.002). In Cox regression, after controlling for LVH, age, sex, and average follow-up SBP, low MEEi exhibited increased hazard of composite fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular end-points (P < 0.01), independently of antihypertensive therapy and associated cardiovascular risk factors., Conclusion: A simple estimate of low myocardial mechano-energetic efficiency is associated with altered metabolic profile, LVH, concentric left ventricular geometry, and diastolic dysfunction and predicts cardiovascular end-points, independently of age, sex, LVH antihypertensive therapy, and cardiovascular risk factors.

Objectives: The relation between aortic root dimension (ARD) and measures of arterial stiffness is uncertain. Accordingly, we studied the relation between ARD and an estimate of arterial stiffness in 12 392 hypertensive patients (age 53 ± 12 years, 43% women) free of prevalent cardiovascular disease and with ejection fraction at least 50%, from the Campania Salute Network Registry., Methods: Echocardiographic ARD was measured and compared with the value predicted by age, sex and height by using a z-score. Arterial stiffness was assessed by the pulse pressure/stroke index. The highest population tertile of pulse pressure/stroke index was considered 'high arterial stiffness'., Results: High arterial stiffness was more common in women than in men (P < 0.001) and associated with older age, diabetes, longer duration of hypertension and less frequent smoking habit (all P less than 0.01). Patients with high arterial stiffness had smaller ARD, higher carotid intima-media thickness and plasma cholesterol, and lower BMI and glomerular filtration rate (all P less than 0.01). In multivariable logistic analysis, high arterial stiffness was associated with both lower ARD z-score [OR 0.83 (95% confidence interval 0.79-0.88)] and higher carotid intima-media thickness [OR 1.36 (95% confidence interval 1.26-1.47); both P less than 0.0001], independent of significant associations with age, female sex, body size, DBP, heart rate, duration of hypertension, diabetes and smoking habit., Conclusion: Small ARD, together with atherosclerotic modifications of conduit arteries, is associated with increased 2-element Windkessel model of arterial stiffness in hypertension, independently of the significant effect of confounders.

Background and Purpose: Carotid atherosclerotic plaques (CAPs) can develop despite appropriate antihypertensive therapy. In this observational study, we assessed characteristics associated with risk of incident CAP in a large hypertensive registry., Methods: We evaluated 2143 hypertensive patients without evidence of CAP. Incident CAP was censored at the time of the first ultrasound control in which CAP was detected. CAP was defined according to European Society of Hypertension/European Society of Cardiology guidelines., Results: At a median follow-up period of 56.6 months, about one-third of patients (32%; N = 688) exhibited new CAP. Those patients were older, more frequently smokers, diabetic, more often with metabolic syndrome, chronic kidney disease (CKD), longer hypertension history, higher baseline SBP, pulse pressure (PP), fasting glucose, total cholesterol and triglycerides, greater left ventricular mass index, higher PP/stroke index ratio and carotid intima-media thickness (IMT; all P < 0.05). In-treatment BP control was similar in both groups. In multivariable Cox regression, CAP was predicted by older age, diabetes, smoking habit, CKD and higher value of initial IMT (all P < 0.02), independently of BP control during follow-up, antihypertensive therapy and other confounders., Conclusion: In this registry of treated hypertensive patients, after adjusting for age and other confounders, risk of incident CAP did not depend on BP control and type of antihypertensive therapy, whereas it was independently related to the magnitude of initial IMT, independently of significant effect of prevalent diabetes and smoking habit. These findings suggest that antihypertensive treatment strategy to stop progression of cardiovascular disease might be difficult to achieve, once target organ damage is established.