Among the multiple uncertainties surrounding the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, a research letter published in The Lancet implicated drugs that antagonize the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) in an unfavorable prognosis of COVID-19. This report prompted investigations to identify mechanisms by which blocking angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) could lead to serious consequences in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The possible association between RAAS inhibitors use and unfavorable prognosis in this disease may have been biased by the presence of […]

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the association among hypertension, tinnitus, and sensorineural hearing loss and evaluate the influence of other covariates on this association. METHODS: Baseline data (2008-2010) from the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil) were analyzed. Altogether, 900 participants were evaluated. The baseline assessment consisted of a 7-hour examination to obtain clinical and laboratory variables. Hearing was measured using pure-tone audiometry. RESULTS: Overall, 33.3% of the participants had hypertension. Participants with hypertension were more likely to be older, male, […]

OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of hypertension and associated factors in farmers in a rural region of Brazil. METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted involving a sample of 790 farmers who were residents of Espírito Santo, Brazil. RESULTS: The prevalence of hypertension was 35.8% (95%CI: 32.5-39.1%, n=283); however, it was higher in men (36.6%, n=151, p

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to explore the effects of diet on the inflammatory response in middle-aged and elderly people with hypertension. METHODS: Thirty overweight or obese patients with stage one hypertension (age range, 45-75 years) were allocated to either the intervention or control group (n=15 per group; age- and sex-matched). Patients in the intervention group consumed a food powder supplement (100 g) instead of a regular meal. The control group maintained their normal dietary habits. This study lasted for six weeks. […]

OBJECTIVES: Cystathionine β-synthase is a major enzyme in the metabolism of plasma homocysteine. Hyperhomocysteinemia is positively associated with hypertension and stroke. The present study was performed to examine the possible effects of Cystathionine β-synthase promoter methylation on the development of hypertension and stroke. METHODS: Using quantitative methylation-specific PCR, we determined the Cystathionine β-synthase methylation levels in 218 healthy individuals and 132 and 243 age- and gender-matched stroke and hypertensive patients, respectively. The relative changes in Cystathionine β-synthase promoter methylation were […]

OBJECTIVE: The present study analyzed blood pressure responses after a single session of isometric handgrip exercise performed with different volumes and intensities by patients with hypertension. METHODS: This randomized crossover trial submitted 12 hypertensive patients (58±5 years old) to four isometric handgrip exercise sessions in a random order: 4 x 2 min at 30% of the maximal voluntary contraction (S30%); 4 x 2 min at 50% of the maximal voluntary contraction (S50%2min); 4 x 3 min at 30% of the […]

OBJECTIVE: We aimed to determine whether aerobic training decreases superoxide levels, increases nitric oxide levels, and improves endothelium-dependent vasodilation in the aortas of spontaneously hypertensive rats. METHODS: Spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY) were distributed into 2 groups: sedentary (SHRsd and WKYsd, n=10 each) and swimming-trained (SHRtr, n=10 and WKYtr, n=10, respectively). The trained group participated in training sessions 5 days/week for 1 h/day with an additional work load of 4% of the animal’s body weight. After […]

OBJECTIVES: Post-transplantation hypertension is prevalent and is associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity and subsequent graft dysfunction. The present study aimed to identify the factors associated with arterial stiffness as measured by the ambulatory arterial stiffness index. METHODS: The current study used a prospective, observational, analytical design to evaluate a group of adult heart transplantation patients. Arterial stiffness was obtained by monitoring ambulatory blood pressure and using the ambulatory arterial stiffness index as the surrogate outcome. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were […]

OBJECTIVES: Considering that changes in the maternal environment may result in changes in progeny, the aim of this study was to investigate the influence of sleep restriction during the last week of pregnancy on renal function and autonomic responses in male descendants at an adult age. METHODS: After confirmation of pregnancy, female Wistar rats were randomly assigned to either a control or a sleep restriction group. The sleep-restricted rats were subjected to sleep restriction using the multiple platforms method for […]

OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to evaluate the relationship between serum albumin levels and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (24-h ABPM) recordings in non-diabetic essential hypertensive patients. METHODS: A total of 354 patients (mean [SD] age: 55.5 [14.3] years, 50% females) with essential hypertension and 24-h ABPM recordings were included. Patient 24-h nighttime and daytime ABPM values, systolic and diastolic dipping status and average nocturnal dipping were recorded. The correlations between serum albumin levels and nocturnal systolic and […]

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether there is any influence of systemic arterial hypertension on the peripheral auditory system. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study that investigated 40 individuals between 30 and 50 years old, who were divided into groups with and without systemic arterial hypertension, using data from high-frequency audiometry, transient-evoked otoacoustic emissions and distortion-product otoacoustic emissions. The results were compared with those from groups of normal-hearing individuals, with and without systemic arterial hypertension, who underwent the pure-tone audiometry test. All […]

OBJECTIVES: We explored whether high blood pressure is associated with metabolic, inflammatory and prothrombotic dysregulation in patients with metabolic syndrome. METHODS: We evaluated 135 consecutive overweight/obese patients. From this group, we selected 75 patients who were not under the regular use of medications for metabolic syndrome as defined by the current Expert Panel on Detection, Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults criteria. The patients were divided into metabolic syndrome with and without high blood pressure criteria (≥130/≥85 […]

OBJECTIVE: We tested the reproducibility of changes in the ambulatory blood pressure (BP) from the initial values, an indicator of BP reactivity and cardiovascular health outcomes, in young, healthy adults. METHOD: The subjects wore an ambulatory BP monitor attached by the same investigator at the same time of day until the next morning on two different days (day 1 and day 2) separated by a week. We compared the ambulatory BP change from the initial values at hourly intervals over […]

OBJECTIVES: Tension cost, the ratio of myosin ATPase activity to tension, reflects the economy of tension development in the myocardium. To evaluate the mechanical advantage represented by the tension cost, we studied papillary muscle contractility and the activity of myosin ATPase in the left ventricles in normal and pathophysiological conditions. METHODS: Experimental protocols were performed using rat left ventricles from: (1) streptozotocin-induced diabetic and control Wistar rats; (2) N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) hypertensive and untreated Wistar rats; (3) deoxycorticosterone acetate […]

OBJECTIVE: Hypertension is a major issue in public health, and the financial costs associated with hypertension continue to increase. Cost-effectiveness studies focusing on antihypertensive drug combinations, however, have been scarce. The cost-effectiveness ratios of the traditional treatment (hydrochlorothiazide and atenolol) and the current treatment (losartan and amlodipine) were evaluated in patients with grade 1 or 2 hypertension (HT1-2). For patients with grade 3 hypertension (HT3), a third drug was added to the treatment combinations: enalapril was added to the traditional […]