Changes in Aortic Pulse Wave Velocity in Hypertensive Postmenopausal Women: Comparison Between a Calcium Channel Blocker vs Angiotensin Receptor Blocker Regimen

J Clin Hypertens (Greenwich). 2012;14:773–778. ©2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Postmenopausal women are at greater risk for hypertension‐related cardiovascular disease. Antihypertensive therapy may help alleviate arterial stiffness that represents a potential modifiable risk factor of hypertension. This randomized controlled study investigated the difference between an angiotensin receptor blocker and a calcium channel blocker in reducing arterial stiffness. Overall, 125 postmenopausal hypertensive women (age, 61.4±6 years; systolic blood pressure/diastolic blood pressure [SBP/DBP], 158±11/92±9 mm Hg) were randomized to valsartan 320 mg±hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) (n=63) or amlodipine 10 mg±HCTZ (n=62). The primary outcome was carotid‐to‐femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV) changes after 38 weeks of treatment. Both treatments lowered peripheral blood pressure (BP) (−22.9/−10.9 mm Hg for valsartan and −25.2/−11.7 mm Hg for amlodipine, P=not significant) and central BP (−15.7/−7.6 mm Hg for valsartan and −19.2/−10.3 mm Hg for amlodipine, P