High blood pressure (hypertension) is one of the leading risk factors of cardiovascular disease worldwide. While an array of hypertension treatments are available, almost all of them have been associated with adverse events. This study aims to derive associations between antihypertensive drugs and adverse events.
This systematic review and meta-analysis involved randomized controlled trials of adults receiving antihypertensives, where antihypertensives were compared with placebo or more antihypertensive drugs. The primary outcome of the study was falls during trial-follow-up, along with acute kidney injury, gout, fracture, and hyperkalemia.
A total of 58 randomized controlled trials, including 280,638 participants followed up for a median of 3 years were included in the study. Of the included trials, seven trials reported data for falls. The findings suggested that antihypertensive treatment was not associated with falls. However, the analysis of other trials showed that antihypertensives were associated with an increased risk of acute kidney injury, syncope, and hypotension. Antihypertensive treatment was found to reduce the risk of mortality. Most of the trials had a low risk of bias, and results were robust to sensitivity analysis.
The research concluded that antihypertensive treatment was not associated with falls but was associated with acute kidney injury, syncope, and hypotension.
Ref: https://www.bmj.com/content/372/bmj.n189
