Influence of Statins on Arterial Stiffness and Blood Pressure Control in Patients With Severe Arterial Hypertension

Objective: In some studies, there was well established a statin influence on arterial stiffness. It was suggested statins could decrease the blood pressure too. Pulse wave velocity (PWV), a gold standard for arterial stiffness measurement, depends on blood pressure (BP). The aim of study was to evaluate the influence of statins on PWV changes in dependency on normalization of the 24-h BP. Design and method: In study, there were included 46 patients (mean age 55.6 ±1.07, f/male 47.8/52.2%) with systolic (SBP)/diastolic (DBP) BP >/=180/110 mmHg, who were treated in specialized unit. Baseline and at the 6th month of combination therapy (mean medicines - 3.8±1.2), we provided office/ambulatory BP and PWV measurements. Results: At 6th month, only 39.1% had 24-h BP <130/80. PWV changes under treatment are present in tab. In statin treatment group we noted significant PWV lowering in spite of BP control. In patients without statins, PWV decreased significantly only in subgroup with achieved the target 24-h BP. In statin group 66.7% achieved target 24-h BP compared to 33.3% in statin (-) group (p=0.048). Conclusions: The statin therapy is able to improve the arterial stiffness (independently to BP control) and helps to achieve the target BP.