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By Neil Sherman, HealthAtoZ contributing writer
Take heart if your doctor puts you on medication to lower your blood pressure. Not only will antihypertensives lower your blood pressure, but they will make your heart muscle work better over the long run.
That's the good news from one of the largest studies of the long-term effects of high blood pressure medication ever conducted, says the American Heart Association (AHA). Sticking to your medication reduces the high blood pressure's characteristic thickening of the heart muscle and allows it to function more efficiently.
"Our results prove beyond the shadow of a doubt that there are benefits for heart muscle from effective, sustained control of hypertension," says study author Dr. Richard B. Devereux, a professor of medicine at Cornell University's Weill Medical College and director of the echocardiography lab at New York Presbyterian Hospital in New York City. "This is yet one more reason for doctors to be very persistent in helping patients reduce their blood pressure."
Devereux says the Losartin Intervention for Endpoint (LIFE) Echocardiography Sub Study followed more than 647 patients for five years. Ultrasound pictures of the heart were taken at the beginning of the study and then retaken every year for two years. Researchers measured the patient's blood pressure as well as the mass of the left ventricle, the thick-walled main pumping chamber of the heart. They also studied the heart's contractility - how much the ventricle contracts and how much the muscle wall thickens when the heart pumps blood.
The study showed that continued use of two types of blood pressure medicines - beta-blockers, which slow the actions of adrenalin, and newer medications that block the effect of angiotension II - help return blood pressure to nearly normal levels while reducing the mass of the ventricle. "This is a much larger and much more definitive study than some other smaller studies," Devereux says. "And it shows that taking blood pressure medicine helps the heart to heal itself to a considerable degree, causing improved function." The study results were published in the journal Circulation.
According to the AHA, one in four Americans has high blood pressure, but because they have no symptoms, nearly one-third of these people don't even know they have it. This is why high blood pressure is often called the "silent killer." In 90 percent to 95 percent of the cases of high blood pressure, the cause is unknown.
High blood pressure is more common in people older than 35 and more prevalent in African-Americans, middle-aged and elderly people, people who are overweight, heavy drinkers, and women who are taking birth control pills. People with diabetes, gout or kidney disease also are more likely to have high blood pressure.
Staying on your blood pressure medicine is critical, Devereux advises. But can you do other things to help control high blood pressure?
Lose weight if you're overweight. Many overweight people have high blood pressure. Stop smoking. Be physically active. Regular physical exercise or activity for 40 to 60 minutes on most days of the week will not only lower your blood pressure, but also help keep you slim and reduce your risk for heart attack or stroke. Drink moderately. Some studies have shown that drinking more than 3 ounces to 4 ounces of alcohol per day will raise blood pressure. Figure out how to relax. Getting rid of stress for short periods during your workday, at night and on weekends also may help to lower your blood pressure. Eat less salt. Americans eat too much salt anyway, according to the AHA. Reducing the amount of salt in your diet can help lower blood pressure.
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External Sources
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Wachtell K, Palmieri V, Olsen MH, et al. Change in systolic left ventricular performance after 3 years of antihypertensive treatment: the losartin intervention for endpoint (LIFE) study. Circulation. 2002;106:227-232
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American Heart Association
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National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
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This article was reviewed and updated June 2007.
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