Safety and tolerability of fixed antihypertensive combinations in blood pressure control: focus on olmesartan medoxomil and amlodipine combination

fety and tolerability of fixed antihypertensive combinations in blood pressure control: focus on olmesartan medoxomil and amlodipine combination Review (3367) Total Article Views Authors: Ijlal Uddin, Shakil Aslam Published Date November 2010 Volume 2010:3 Pages 155 - 162 DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.2147/IBPC.S6662 Ijlal Uddin, Shakil Aslam Division of Nephrology and Hypertension, Georgetown University Hospital, Washington, District of Columbia, USA Abstract: Hypertension is a major health problem worldwide and remains underdiagnosed and undertreated. Although public awareness and control of hypertension have improved over the last decade, only one-third of hypertensive patients achieve the rather conservative blood pressure (BP) goal of <140/90 mmHg. Most hypertensive patients require more than one drug for optimum BP control. Expert panels recommend use of combination therapy with two or more medications for Stage 2 and higher hypertension and in high-risk patients. However, the use of multiple drugs reduces patient compliance. Fixed-dose combination therapy helps improve patient compliance and thus achieve the target BP. Dose titration of the individual constituent drugs is recommended before switching to an equivalent fixed-dose combination. Randomized, controlled trials have shown that the fixed-dose combination of amlodipine–olmesartan medoxomil is more effective in lowering BP than monotherapy with either of these agents, with a similar side effect profile.