Treating Special Populations with Hypertension: Is a Two-Drug or Fixed-Dose Combination Therapy Appropriate Initial Treatment in Hypertension?

Dr. Jan Basile from the Medical University of South Carolina/Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center moderated the topic "Treating Special Populations with Hypertension: Is a Two-Drug or Fixed-Dose Combination Therapy Appropriate Initial Treatment in Hypertension?" with Drs. Alan Gradman from Temple University, Shawna Nesbitt from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, and Dr. Matthew Weir from the University of Maryland Medical Center participating. The discussion focused primarily on: (1) when to use monotherapy compared to combination therapy in newly diagnosed hypertensive patients; (2) the role of baseline blood pressure, age and medical comorbidities as a determinant for monotherapy compared to combination therapy; (3) the barriers to combination therapy including education, side effects, insurance coverage; (4) the tolerability of combination therapy; (5) the use of certain antihypertensives in special populations; (6) the use of preferred combination therapies; (7) the use of monotherapy compared to combination therapy in elderly patients; (8) the use of combination therapy in patients with chronic kidney disease. (Med Roundtable Cardiovasc Ed. 2011;2(4):225-234) ©2011 FoxP2 Media, LLC