Discoveries & Impact (August 2024)
Hypertension, or the pathologic condition of having elevated blood pressure, is the leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease in both the United States and globally. Even with many pharmacological and lifestyle therapeutic options, only 23% of individuals with high blood pressure achieve adequate control.
In 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved renal denervation, a catheter-based procedure that silences the renal nervous system, which is an important contributor to hypertension. Renal denervation was approved as an adjunctive treatment for patients in which traditional antihypertensive management remains inadequate.
The American Heart Association (AHA) recently published a scientific statement reviewing the current clinical data surrounding renal denervation as a therapeutic option for hypertension. The statement was co-authored by Carlos Mena-Hurtado, MD, associate professor of medicine (cardiovascular medicine).
Randomized controlled trial data, beginning in 2010, showed efficacy for two main groups of patients: those with true resistant hypertension (who have failed multiple medications) and those with mild to severe hypertension (for whom medications were withdrawn for various reasons).
The statement concludes that renal denervation is an effective treatment for many patients with a favorable immediate safety profile. More research is required to better understand which patients may benefit most.
To learn more, read the article, “Renal Denervation for the Treatment of Hypertension: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association.”
Cluett JL, Blazek O, Brown AL, East C, Ferdinand KC, Fisher NDL, Ford CD, Griffin KA, Mena-Hurtado CI, Sarathy H, Vongpatanasin W, Townsend RR; American Heart Association Council on Hypertension; Council on Cardiovascular and Stroke Nursing; Council on the Kidney in Cardiovascular Disease; and Council on Peripheral Vascular Disease. Renal Denervation for the Treatment of Hypertension: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association. Hypertension. 2024 Aug 5. doi: 10.1161/HYP.0000000000000240. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39101202.