Hypertension in Diabetes

Review
In: Endotext [Internet]. South Dartmouth (MA): MDText.com, Inc.; 2000.
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Excerpt

The coexistence of diabetes and hypertension is known to have a multiplicative effect on adverse clinical outcomes with respect to both microvascular and macrovascular disease. Effective management of diabetes should therefore include a multifaceted approach combining optimal control of blood pressure and lipids with appropriate glycemic control. The pathophysiology of hypertension in diabetes involves maladaptive changes in the autonomic nervous system, vascular endothelial dysfunction, enhanced activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, immune function alterations, and harmful environmental factors. Multiple high-quality randomized controlled trials have shown improvement in morbidity with lowering of elevated blood pressure in people with diabetes. Attention must be paid to individual risk factors and co-morbidities with a goal of less than 130/80 mm Hg in most patients with diabetes who are at higher risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) than those without diabetes. Good glycemic control, optimizing weight, and promotion of exercise as well as lessening harmful environment factors such as air pollution exposure are integral components of the approach to blood pressure control in these patients. Judicious selection of therapy and consideration of relevant side-effect profiles is paramount. The potential for both beneficial and detrimental drug interactions must be kept in mind and drug combinations should be chosen after due deliberation. Angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers remain preferred agents for initiation of antihypertensive therapy, while combined use of these agents is not recommended due to poor renal outcomes. With the advent of newer antidiabetic agents such as SGLT inhibitors and GLP1 receptor agonists, consideration should be given to their antihypertensive, renal, and cardiovascular disease lowering properties when initiating therapy for glycemic control. For complete coverage of all related areas of Endocrinology, please visit our on-line FREE web-text, WWW.ENDOTEXT.ORG.

Publication types

  • Review