Significant Reductions in Mortality and Cardiovascular Events Shown Using Blood Pressure-Lowering Treatment in Those Aged 8...(the reduction in fatal strokes is an imp...)

Emeritus Professor Christopher Bulpitt, the lead investigator on the study from the Care of the Elderly Group at Imperial College London, said: "Before our study, doctors were unsure about whether very elderly people with high blood pressure could see the same benefits from treatment to lower their blood pressure as those we see in younger people. Our results clearly show that many patients aged 80 and over could benefit greatly from treatment. Populations are living longer and we have growing numbers of people living well into their 80s and beyond, so this is good news. We are very pleased that cardiovascular events were reduced safely with a reduction in total mortality."

The researchers hope that their findings will clear up uncertainty amongst clinicians about the benefits of treating those aged 80 and over for high blood pressure.

Dr Nigel Beckett, the trial co-ordinator from the Care of the Elderly Group at Imperial College London, added: "Many very elderly people with high blood pressure are not being treated for it at the moment, because doctors are unsure about whether or not treatment will help them. We hope that following our study, doctors will be encouraged to treat such patients in accordance with our protocol."

As the trial was stopped early, an extension involving patients receiving active-treatment is now underway to assess the longer term benefits of treatment.

Patients with high blood pressure (defined here as a systolic blood pressure between 160-199 mmHg), from thirteen countries across the world, were randomised for the double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, which began in 2001. The mean age of participants was 83 years and 7 months.

Patients were given either placebo or indapamide slow release (SR) with the addition of perindopril, in tablet form once a day as required, to achieve a target blood pressure of 150/80 mmHg. The average follow-up of
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