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Hypertension Canada's 2020 guidelines for the prevention, diagnosis, risk assessment, and treatment of hypertension in adults and children provide comprehensive, evidence-based guidance for health care professionals and patients. Hypertension Canada develops the guidelines using rigourous methodology, carefully mitigating the risk of bias in our process. All draft recommendations undergo critical review by expert methodologists without conflict to ensure quality. Our guideline panel is diverse, including multiple health professional groups (nurses, pharmacy, academics, and physicians), and worked in concert with experts in primary care and implementation to ensure optimal usability. The 2020 guidelines include new guidance on the management of resistant hypertension and the management of hypertension in women planning pregnancy.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has altered the availability of face-to-face care in family practice. The negative effect on routine care for chronic disease management is an ongoing challenge. The purpose of this article is to describe some of those challenges and to suggest solutions. High

Hypertension Canada provides annually-updated, evidence-based guidelines for the diagnosis, assessment, prevention, and treatment of hypertension in adults and children. This year, the adult and pediatric guidelines are combined in one document. The new 2018 pregnancy-specific hypertension guidelines are published separately. For 2018, 5 new guidelines were introduced, and one existing guideline on the blood pressure thresholds and targets in the setting of thrombolysis for acute ischemic stroke was revised. The use of validated wrist devices for the estimation of blood pressure in individuals with large arm circumference is now included. Guidance is provided for the follow-up measurements of blood pressure, with the use of standardized methods and electronic (oscillometric) upper arm devices in individuals with hypertension, and either ambulatory blood pressure monitoring or home blood pressure monitoring in individuals with white coat effect. We specify that all individuals with hypertension should have an assessment of global cardiovascular risk to promote health behaviours that lower blood pressure. Finally, an angiotensin receptor-neprilysin inhibitor combination should be used in place of either an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor or angiotensin receptor blocker in individuals with heart failure (with ejection fraction < 40%) who are symptomatic despite appropriate doses of guideline-directed heart failure therapies. The specific evidence and rationale underlying each of these guidelines are discussed.

We present Hypertension Canada's inaugural evidence-based recommendations for the diagnosis and management of resistant hypertension. Hypertension is present in 21% of the Canadian population, and among those with hypertension, resistant hypertension has an estimated prevalence from 10% to 30%. This subgroup of hypertensive individuals is important, because resistant hypertension portends a high cardiovascular risk. Because of its importance, Hypertension Canada formed a Guidelines Committee to conduct a review of the evidence and develop recommendations for the diagnosis and management of resistant hypertension. The Hypertension Canada Guidelines Committee recommends that patients with blood pressure above target, despite use of 3 or more blood pressure-lowering drugs at optimal doses, preferably including a diuretic, be identified as those with apparent resistant hypertension. Patients identified with apparent resistant hypertension should be assessed for white coat effect, nonadherence, and therapeutic inertia, investigated for secondary hypertension, and referred to a provider with expertise in hypertension. There is no randomized controlled trial evidence for better cardiovascular outcomes with any class of antihypertensive agent at this time, so recommendations for a preferred drug class cannot be made. Furthermore, we provide a summary of the current evidence concerning the role of device therapy in the management of resistant hypertension. We will continue updating the guidelines as additional high-quality evidence with relevance to daily practice becomes available.

BackgroundPrevious reviews have shown that β-blocker use for the treatment of hypertension without compelling indications was associated with increased risk of stroke in the elderly. It remains unclear whether this increased risk was driven by the type of β-blocker. We sought to compare the efficacy of atenolol vs nonatenolol β-blockers in clinical trials enrolling young (< 60 years) and older patients with hypertension.MethodsThe Cochrane and MEDLINE databases were searched (January 2006-May 2013) for randomized trials evaluating stroke, myocardial infarction, death, or composite cardiovascular end points. Twenty-one hypertension trials with data on 145,811 participants were identified: 15 used atenolol, 7 were placebo-controlled trials, and 14 were active comparator trials. There were no trials of newer generation β-blockers identified.ResultsAmong the elderly, atenolol was associated with an increased risk of stroke (relative risk [RR], 1.17; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.05-1.30) compared with other antihypertensive agents. The risk of stroke for nonatenolol β-blockers compared with other agents (RR, 1.22; 95% CI, 0.99-1.50) did not reach statistical significance in the elderly. In the young, atenolol was associated with reduced risk of stroke compared with other agents (RR, 0.78; 95% CI, 0.64-0.95), whereas nonatenolol β-blockers were associated with a lower risk of composite cardiac events (RR, 0.86; 95% CI, 0.75-0.996) compared with placebo, with no significant difference in events compared with active controls.ConclusionsIn the young, both atenolol and nonatenolol β-blockers are effective in reducing cardiovascular end points for hypertension without compelling indications. Atenolol is associated with increased stroke in the elderly but whether this extends to nonatenolol β-blockers remains uncertain.

We sought to examine the relationship between housing status and risk of HIV-infection among injection drug users in Vancouver, Canada. Using Kaplan–Meier survival analysis, we found an elevated HIV incidence rate among those who reported residing in unstable housing (log-rank p = 0.006 ). In Cox's regression survival analysis, unstable housing remained marginally associated with elevated risks of HIV infection (relative hazard=1.40 (95% confidence interval: 0.09–2.00); p = 0.084 ) after adjustment for potential confounders including syringe sharing. Adjusted generalized estimating equations analysis that examined factors associated with unstable housing demonstrated that residing in unstable housing was independently associated with several HIV risk behaviours including borrowing used needles (adjusted odds ratio (OR)=1.14) and sex-trade involvement (adjusted OR=1.19). Our findings suggest that unstable housing environments are associated with elevated risk of HIV- infection due to risk behaviours that take place in these environments. Implications for policy including more comprehensive housing interventions (e.g. ‘floating support’) are discussed.

Many cities are experiencing infectious disease epidemics and substantial community harms as a result of illicit drug use. Although medically supervised smoking facilities (SSFs) remain untested in North America, local health officials in Vancouver are considering to prepare a submission to Health Canada for an exemption to open Canada's first SSF for evaluation. Reluctance of health policymakers to initiate a pilot study of SSFs may be due in part to outstanding questions regarding the potential uptake and community impacts of the intervention. This study was conducted to evaluate the prevalence and correlates of willingness to use an SSF among illicit drug smokers who are enrolled in the Vancouver Injection Drug Users Study. Participants who reported actively smoking cocaine, heroin, or methamphetamine who returned for follow-up between June 2002 and December 2002 were eligible for these analyses. Those who reported willingness to use an SSF were compared with those who were unwilling to use an SSF by using logistic regression analyses. Four hundred and forty-three participants were eligible for this study. Among respondents, 124 (27.99%) expressed willingness to attend an SSF. Variables that were independently associated with willingness to attend an SSF in multivariate analyses included sex-trade work (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]=1.85), crack pipe sharing (AOR=2.24), and residing in the city's HIV epicentre (AOR =1.64). We found that participants who demonstrated a willingness to attend an SSF were more likely to be involved in the sex trade and share crack pipes. Although the impact of SSFs in North America can only be quantified by scientific evaluation, these data indicate a potential for public health and community benefits if SSFs were to become available.

Background: We undertook this study to evaluate the factors associated with sex-trade involvement among a cohort of female injection drug users (IDUs).Methods: We performed a prospective analysis of factors associated with sex-trade involvement among female participants enrolled in a prospective cohort study of Vancouver injection drug users. We examined HIV-status during follow-up and measured time updated social, sex- and drug-related variables relating to activities engaged in during the previous six months. Variables potentially associated with sex-trade involvement were evaluated using generalized estimating equations (GEE) with logit link for binary outcomes.Results: Between May 1, 1996 and November 30, 2003, 565 participants were recruited into the cohort of whom 336 (59%) reported being involved in the sex-trade at baseline. Factors associated with reporting sex-trade involvement among women in the adjusted model included incarceration, daily injected cocaine use, daily crack use, borrowing syring...

BACKGROUND: While several studies have reported on sexual risk behaviours and the prevalence of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among injection drug users (IDUs), there are fewer prospective studies that have been able to examine populations of IDUs with no history of STIs. Therefore, the authors examined prevalence, correlates and factors associated with time to first STI infection in a prospective cohort of IDUs in Vancouver, British Columbia.METHODS: The authors examined the prevalence and correlates of STIs among IDUs at the time of recruitment into a prospective cohort study. The authors also evaluated the cumulative rate of time to first STI among IDUs with no history of STIs at baseline using the Kaplan-Meier method, and modelled factors independently associated with first STI using Cox regression.RESULTS: Between May 1996 and November 2003, 1560 individuals were recruited into the cohort; of these individuals, 745 reported a history of STI at baseline. Among the 815 who did not report an STI at baseline, 671 (82%) had at least one follow-up visit and were eligible for the analysis of time to first STI. After 36 months of follow-up, the cumulative rate of first STI was 8.2% for men and 15.9% for women (log-rank PCONCLUSIONS: In the present study, the authors found that STIs were associated with both regular sex partnerships and sex trade involvement. These findings are of particular concern because both unprotected sex with regular partners and sex trade involvement is common among IDUs. Interventions to encourage condom use among IDUs, particularly those with regular sex partners and those involved in the sex trade, should be further developed.

Objectives: While much research to date has examined female sex trade work, little has been done to evaluate factors associated with male sex trade involvement or to assess their health service needs. This is particularly true for male sex trade workers who are also injection drug users (IDUs). Therefore, the present analyses were undertaken to evaluate factors associated with sex trade work in a prospective cohort study of male IDUs. Methods: We identified factors associated with sex trade involvement among male participants enrolled in the Vancouver Injection Drug Users Study (VIDUS). Since serial measures for each individual were available at semiannual intervals, variables potentially associated with sex trade involvement were evaluated with adjusted odds ratios (AOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) computed using generalised estimating equations (GEE). Results: Between 1996 and 2003, 995 male IDUs were enrolled into the VIDUS cohort among whom 108 (11%) reported being involved in the sex trade at enrolment and 102 (10%) individuals initiated sex trade involvement during the follow up period. In multivariate analyses, factors independently associated with sex trade involvement included HIV positive serostatus (AOR: 1.77 (95% CI: 1.44 to 2.17)), daily cocaine injection (AOR: 1.37 (95% CI: 1.11 to 1.70)), daily crack smoking (AOR: 1.36 (95% CI: 1.07 to 1.72)), borrowing syringes (AOR: 1.73 (95% CI: 1.32 to 2.25)), and inconsistent use of condoms with casual sexual partners (AOR 0.66, CI 0.53 to 0.82). We also found that male sex trade workers were more likely to report having sought but been unable to access substance abuse treatment (AOR: 1.28 (95% CI: 0.98 to 1.67); p = 0.076). Conclusions: Males involved in the sex trade in this setting have higher levels of HIV infection and engage in risky injection behaviours at an elevated rate. Since these behaviours have major implications for HIV acquisition and public health, prevention efforts and targeted provision of addiction treatment to this population should be expanded.

Background: There have been growing concerns about possible gender-related differences in rates of responses to highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). We therefore examined the association between gender and time to HIV-1 RNA rebound in antiretroviral-naive HIV-infected patients initiating HAART in a population-based setting. Methods: We evaluated all antiretroviral-naive HIV-infected men and women who achieved HIV-1 RNA suppression at least once (HIV RNA

Estimated and potential medical costs of treating patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in urban areas of high HIV prevalence have not been well defined. We estimated the total medical cost of HIV disease among injection drug users in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, assuming stable and increasing HIV prevalence. Total medical costs were estimated by multiplying the average lifetime medical cost per person by the number of HIV-infected individuals. We assumed the cost of each HIV infection to be 150,000 Canadian dollars, based on empirical data, and HIV prevalence estimates were derived from the Vancouver Injection Drug Users Study (VIDUS) and external data sources. By use of Monte Carlo simulation methodology, we performed sensitivity analyses to estimate total medical cost, assuming the HIV prevalence remained stable at 31% and under a scenario in which the prevalence rose to 50%. Expected medical expenditures based on current HIV prevalence levels were estimated as 215,852,613 Canadian dollars. If prevalence rises to 50% as reported in other urban centers, the median estimated medical cost would be approximately 348,935,865 Canadian dollars. This represents a difference in the total costs between the two scenarios of 133,083,253 Canadian dollars. Health planners should consider that predicted medical expenditures related to the HIV epidemic among injection drug users in our setting may cost an estimated 215,852,613 Canadian dollars. If funding cannot be found for appropriate prevention interventions and the prevalence rises to 50%, a further 133,083,253 Canadian dollars may be required.

We describe a 52-year-old woman presenting with acute onset of severe burning paraesthesia in the hands and feet associated with allodynia and antalgic gait. At the time of admission to hospital no motor weakness was present. A diagnosis of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) was considered when neurophysiological studies were completed showing convincing evidence of demyelination on motor conduction studies and sural sparing on sensory nerve studies.1 We describe this case as a sensory variant of GBS. Clinical improvement followed treatment with a single course of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). The patient made a complete clinical recovery within 6 months of onset and repeat neurophysiological studies showed marked improvement. We encourage clinicians to consider an atypical variant of GBS in patients presenting with acute sensory complaints.

The four major classes of antihypertensive drugs—diuretics, β-blockers, calcium channel blockers, and renin-angiotensin system inhibitors (including angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers)—have significant qualitative and quantitative differences in the adverse effects they cause. Structural and chemical differences have been identified within these classes, especially among the calcium channel blockers and, to a lesser extent, among the thiazide/thiazide-like diuretics. However, it has been more difficult to demonstrate that these differences translate into differential effects with respect to either the surrogate endpoint of blood pressure reduction or, more importantly, hypertension-related cardiovascular complications. Based on a hierarchy-of-evidence approach, differences are apparent between hydrochlorothiazide and chlorthalidone based on evidence of moderate quality. Low-quality evidence suggests atenolol is less effective than other β-blockers. However, no significant intraclass differences have been established among the other classes of antihypertensive drugs.

The delivery of antiretroviral therapy (ART) to injection drug users (IDU) may be influenced by provider concerns regarding the potential for increased HIV-related risk behavior following the initiation of HIV treatment. We evaluated whether ART initiation was associated with changes in syringe lending patterns among a long-term prospective cohort of HIV-positive IDU in Vancouver, Canada. Among 380 ART-naive individuals eligible for this analysis, the median age was 34.2 (interquartile range [IQR] 27.7–40.8), 171 (45.0%) were female, and the median follow-up duration was 60 months (IQR = 18–113). Between May 1996 and April 2008, 260 (68.4%) participants initiated ART. In a generalized linear mixed-effects model which compared each individual's likelihood of sharing syringes prior to and following the initiation of ART, syringe lending was not significantly associated with ART initiation in unadjusted (odds ratio = 0.72, 95% CI: 0.38–1.36) or adjusted (odds ratio = 0.78, 95% CI: 0.42–1.45) analyses. Concerns regarding increased injection risk behaviors following the initiation of ART were not observed in this setting.

We performed analyses of syringe buying and syringe selling among Vancouver injection drug users, recruited from May 1996 and followed up between November 2002 and August 2003, in the context of one of North America's largest syringe exchange programs (SEPs). An interviewer-administered questionnaire, approximately 45 minutes in duration, was used to collect information regarding risk factors for HIV infection and sources of sterile syringes. Seventy participants (15%) reported syringe selling and 122 (26%) reported syringe buying. Syringe sellers were more likely to be female, reside in unstable housing, need help injecting, and have visited the SEP at least once weekly. Syringe buyers were more likely to need help injecting, have difficulty finding new syringes, have binged on drugs, and have visited the SEP at least once weekly. Syringe buying most frequently occurred when the SEP was closed.

Objectives We hypothesized that men in a relationship would engage in less risky sexual activity with their casual partners compared to men with only casual partners. Study Cross-sectional data were collected between 1999 and 2003 in a study of young human immunodeficiency virus-seronegative gay men in Vancouver, British Columbia. We assessed the substance use and sexual behaviors of 156 men and compared those having casual partners in addition to 1 regular partner for the duration of the previous year (n = 43) to those reporting only casual partners during the previous year (n = 113). Results Men with just 1 regular partner were not significantly different from men without a regular partner with regard to sexual behaviors reportedly engaged in with casual partners, self-reported sexually transmitted infections diagnosed within the previous year, or demographic characteristics. Only previous use of poppers and higher frequencies of marijuana use were found among men without a regular partner. Conclusions In our cohort, young gay men in a relationship do not appear less likely to engage in risky sex with casual partners than men with casual partners only.

Case reports suggest that deaths due to asthma can occur without airway plugging. In this study, we examined the hypothesis that obstruction of the airway lumen by an exudate containing mucus and cells is a key feature of fatal asthma attacks.We quantified airway narrowing and lumenal content in 275 airways from 93 patients with fatal asthma aged 10 to 49 years (59 white subjects and 34 Polynesian subjects, including 19 children), compared with airways from control patients who died suddenly without pulmonary diseases.The severity of lumenal occlusion ranged from 4% to 100% in these cases, but only five airways showed less than 20% occlusion. Compared with controls, patients with asthma had more lumenal occlusion (mean [+/- SD] open lumen, 42% +/- 23% vs. 93% +/- 8%), greater mucus occlusion (28% +/- 13% vs. 5% +/- 6%), and more occlusion by cells (30% +/- 17% vs. 3% +/- 2%, all P0.0001). Airway narrowing was greater in larger airways (P0.0001) and older patients (P = 0.009). Greater lumen content was associated with a higher proportion of cells (P = 0.003), and cells made up a higher proportion of the exudate in the small airways (P0.0001). Lumenal mucus was greater in younger patients with asthma (P = 0.0007) and in Polynesian patients with asthma (P = 0.04).Airway lumenal obstruction by an exudate composed of mucus and cells is a major contributing cause of fatal asthma in most patients.

Abstract 4768 Background Primary effusion lymphoma (PEL) is a non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) which comprises 4% of all AIDS-related lymphomas. PEL has a predilection for body cavities, causing pleural and pericardial effusions and ascites, but may present as masses. EBV is present in PEL cells in 80% of cases, but HHV-8 infection in PEL cells is required for the diagnosis (dx). Historically, treatment encompassed approaches including intracavitary antiretroviral medications (ARV) or chemotherapeutic agents, single or multi-agent systemic chemotherapy, and systemic ARVs, but median survival in case series using these approaches was only 6 months (mo). Treatment with multi-agent chemotherapy and highly active ARV therapy (HAART) yields good outcome in other HIV-NHL with survival approaching that of the HIV-negative population, but gives unknown survival rates in PEL. Recent consideration has been given to targeted therapy directed against HHV-8 infection with antiviral agents, with encouraging outcomes reported in the literature, particularly the HHV-8 associated syndromes Kaposi Sarcoma (KS) and Multicentric Castleman's Disease. We report on 5 patients (pts) diagnosed with PEL and treated at St. Paul's Hospital, 2 of whom are receiving valganciclovir (VGCV) therapy directed against HHV-8 infection of PEL cells. Methods We conducted a retrospective review of pts with a tissue dx of PEL since 2004. PEL data was collected from the clinical charts and HIV-related data from the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS (CFE) database. A literature search was performed to capture prior studies of anti-HHV-8 medications used to treat PEL. Results The median age at PEL diagnosis was 60 (range 48-68) years (y); gender was: male, n=4; and female, n=1. 2 pts had a history of KS. The median CD4 count at PEL dx was 230 (50-560) cells/ml, 1 pt had a CD4 count of 50 cells/ml and all others were ≥210 cells/ml; median HIV viral load (VL; reported in 4) was 81 (35-176,600) copies/ml. The median time from HIV dx to PEL dx was 6 (0-21) y and from initiation of HAART to PEL dx 1 (0-11) y. Clinical PEL presentation was: pleural effusions, n=4; pericardial effusion, n=2; ascites, n=1; associated mass, n=1; mass without effusions, n=1. PEL treatment was: CHOP + HAART, n=2; CHOP + HAART + VGCV, n=1; HAART + VGCF, n=1; supportive care, n=1. 2 pts receiving CHOP and HAART are both in complete remission (CR) at 8 and 57 months (mo) from PEL dx. 2 pts diagnosed since December 2008 are receiving VGCV and HAART, and 1 of these pts is receiving CHOP with good tolerance (the other pt declined cytotoxic chemotherapy). Of 3 pts receiving CHOP, there was 1 episode of febrile neutropenia (FN) in 1 pt and 5 episodes of FN and 3 clinical infections in a second pt. The same pt had profound anemia and thrombocytopenia requiring transfusion support; this pt did not receive VGCV. 1 pt receiving VGCV with HAART and CHOP required G-CSF support but did not develop FN or clinical infection. 1 pt presented with a poor performance status, received supportive care only and died within one mo of PEL dx; all others are alive at 4, 8, 14 and 57 months from PEL dx. A literature review identified 2 reports of pts with PEL receiving systemic cidofovir (CDFV) directed against HHV-8. One pt with a CD4 count of 72 cells/ml and an HIV-VL of 75,000 copies/ml received unspecified systemic chemotherapy, HAART and intravenous (IV) CDFV followed by VGCV and is in CR at 68 mo from PEL dx. A second pt with a CD4 of 498 cells/ml (HIV-VL not reported) received HAART, IV cidofovir and interferon and is in CR at 28 mo. Conclusions PEL treatment has focused on optimization of HIV control with HAART and lymphoma control with chemotherapy, however, antiviral medications as targeted therapy directed against HHV-8 infection of PEL cells may be used without undue toxicity and possibly with success. PEL generally involves latent HHV-8 infection, which is theoretically not susceptible to antiviral medications, but there are reports in the literature of encouraging results achieved by combining agents to induce lytic infection (including chemotherapeutic agents) with anti-herpes virus therapy. Our review indicates good tolerance of VGCV with HAART ± CHOP chemotherapy, and that with newer treatment approaches, pts may live longer than the 6 mo median survival previously reported. To our knowledge, our pts receiving VGCV are the third and fourth pts reported receiving anti-HHV-8 therapy as treatment for PEL. Disclosures: Off Label Use This presentation discusses the use of valganciclovir in the treatment of HHV-8 associated primary effusion lymphoma..