Effect of eprosartan-based therapy on systolic blood pressure and total cardiovascular risk in a large international population: preliminary report of the observational POWER study

BACKGROUND Estimation of total cardiovascular risk is useful for developing preventive strategies for individual patients. The POWER (Physicians' Observational Work on Patient Education According to their Vascular Risk) survey, a 6-month, open-label, multinational, post-marketing observational evaluation of eprosartan, an angiotensin II receptor blocker, was undertaken to assess the efficacy and safety of eprosartan-based therapy in the treatment of high arterial blood pressure in a large population recruited from 16 countries with varying degrees of baseline cardiovascular risk, and the effect of eprosartan-based therapy on total cardiovascular risk, as represented by the SCORE (Systematic Coronary Risk Assessment) or Framingham risk equations. METHODS Participating physicians recruited > 29,000 hypertensive patients whom they considered to be candidates (according to specified criteria) for treatment with eprosartan 600 mg/day, with other drugs added at the discretion of the physician. RESULTS During treatment, systolic blood pressure decreased by 25.8 ± 14.4 mmHg to 134.6 ± 11.4 mmHg (P < 0.001), mean diastolic blood pressure fell by 12.6 ± 9.5 mmHg to 81.1 ± 7.6 mmHg, and pulse pressure fell by 13.2 ± 13.5 mmHg to 53.6 ± 11.4 mmHg (both P < 0.01). Calculated total cardiovascular risk declined in parallel with the reduction in blood pressure. CONCLUSION The POWER study has demonstrated, in a large and nonselected population, the feasibility and practicability of reducing total cardiovascular risk through systematic management of high blood pressure.