The efficacy and safety of valsartan and a combination of valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide in the treatment of patients with mild to moderate arterial hypertension…

Background and aim: The aim of the study was to establish the effect of valsartan and combination of valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ), in a wide population of patients with mild to moderate arterial hypertension, on pulse wave velocity (PWV) and central blood pressure (CBP). Methods: International, multicentre, open-labelled, prospective trial. After one week of washout in previously treated patients, the patients were treated for 16 weeks according to the protocol. Naïve patients received the treatment immediately. During the active treatment, 4 visits were planned for each patient to obtain data for the primary and secondary efficacy. At the beginning and at the end of the study PWV and CBP were performed with central arterial pressure waveform analysis (SphygmoCor®, Atcor Medical). This study is registered with clinicaltrialsregister.eu, EudraCT number 2012-005129-57. Results: The results of the present VICTORY trial showed that valsartan and combination of valsartan and HCTZ effectively reduced the brachial blood pressure in patients with mild to moderate arterial hypertension as well as PWV, augmentation index (AIx, although not statistically significant), central systolic blood pressure and central diastolic blood pressure. Conclusions: Valsartan and valsartan/HCTZ improve arterial stiffness in patients with mild to moderate hypertension.