Switch from ABCD pretreatment to A-II-A treatment: a multinational, open, centrally randomized, prospective parallel group comparison.

The aim of this trial was to evaluate the efficacy and safety of switching antihypertensive monotherapy from a non-angiotensin II receptor blocker treatment, i.e., angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor, beta-blocker, calcium (Ca2+) channel blocker or diuretic, to monotherapy with candesartan cilexetil 8 or 16 mg once daily. Patients (age 18-74 years) with mild to moderate essential hypertension were enrolled in this multinational, open-label, centrally randomized, prospective parallel group study. Previous antihypertensive treatment, with either an ACE inhibitor, a beta-blocker, a Ca2+ channel blocker or a diuretic, was maintained for a run-in period of 4 weeks and was then substituted at the baseline visit where patients were randomized into two groups to receive either candesartan cilexetil 8 mg (n = 985) or 16 mg (n = 982) once daily for an 8-week treatment period. Blood pressure (BP) reduction was the primary endpoint after 4 weeks of therapy and the secondary endpoint after 8 weeks of therapy. Results of the first 4 weeks of therapy are presented here. A total of 1,967 patients were included: 985 received candesartan cilexetil 8 mg and 982 candesartan cilexetil 16 mg once daily; 1,879 patients were included in the intention-to-treat analysis. The percentages of patients receiving an ACE inhibitor, a beta-blocker, a Ca2+ channel blocker or a diuretic as previous antihypertensive treatment were 44.7, 18.8, 30.6 and 5.9%, respectively. After 4 weeks of treatment with candesartan cilexetil 8 and 16 mg, sitting diastolic and systolic BP were reduced (mean +/- SD): -7 +/- 10 and -14 +/- 17 mmHg, and -8 +/- 10 and -16 +/- 16 mmHg, respectively. The percentage of patients who were still borderline hypertensive or hypertensive after 4 weeks of substitute treatment was lower in the candesartan cilexetil 16 mg group than in the 8 mg group: 7.1 and 5.3%, respectively, versus 9 and 7.4%, respectively. Reported adverse events were mild or moderate in intensity and in accordance with those reported in the literature. Candesartan cilexetil can be considered an effective and safe alternative to other common antihypertensive monotherapies in a large spectrum of patients with mild and moderate hypertension.