Angiotensin II receptor blocker-based vs. non-angiotensin II receptor blocker-based therapy in patients with angiographically documented coronary artery disease and hypertension: the Heart Institute of Japan Candesartan Randomized Trial for Evaluation in Coronary Artery Disease (HIJ-CREATE)

Aims To test whether angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs) therapy can reduce the incidence of cardiovascular events compared with non-ARB-based standard pharmacotherapy in coronary artery disease (CAD) patients with hypertension. Methods and results Angiographically documented CAD patients with hypertension were randomly assigned to receive either candesartan-based ( n = 1024) or non-ARB-based pharmacotherapy including angiotensin-converting enzyme-inhibitors ( n = 1025). The primary endpoint was the occurrence of a first major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE). There were 552 primary events during a median follow-up of 4.2 years: 264 (25.8%) in the candesartan group and 288 (28.1%) in the non-ARB group (hazard ratio, 0.89; 95% confidence interval, 0.76–1.06). No significant differences existed between groups in terms of cardiovascular death (2.7 vs. 2.4%, 1.14; 0.66–1.95), non-fatal myocardial infarction (2.8 vs. 2.5%, 1.12; 0.66–1.88), or heart failure (3.9 vs. 4.3%, 0.91; 0.59–1.40). New-onset diabetes was diagnosed significantly less frequently with candesartan than with non-ARBs (0.37; 0.16–0.89). Incidence of study drug discontinuation due to adverse events was lower with candesartan than with non-ARBs (5.7 vs. 12.2%, P < 0.001). Conclusion Although candesartan showed no significant differences in MACE compared with the non-ARB treatment group, the drug significantly reduced the incidence of new-onset diabetes and was better tolerated. This study is registered as International Standard Randomised Controlled Trial No. UMIN000000790.