Rationale, design, methods and baseline demography of participants of the Anglo-Scandinavian Cardiac Outcomes Trial. ASCOT investigators

To test the primary hypothesis that a newer antihypertensive treatment regimen (calcium channel blocker +/- an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor) is more effective than an older regimen (beta-blocker +/- a diuretic) in the primary prevention of coronary heart disease (CHD). To test a second primary hypothesis that a statin compared with placebo will further protect against CHD endpoints in hypertensive subjects with a total cholesterol <or = 6.5 mmol/l.