Physicians' views of the effectiveness of lipid lowering drugs and the decision to prescribe such drugs is affected by the predominant use of reduction of relative risk in trial reports and advertisements.

Our data provide empirical evidence of separable peripheral and central sympathetic response components. The combined report of low-frequency BPV and PEP gives distinct information on both central SNS control and the level of sympathetic cardiac activation achieved.

Six months after PCI and stenting, 23% of patients had target vessel ischemia, which was silent in 62%. Silent ischemia predicted a worse outcome than did no ischemia and tended to have a better outcome than symptomatic ischemia. This was closely related to the extent of ischemia. The SDS added incremental value to pre-scan findings with respect to diagnosis and prognosis, indicating the utility of MPS for risk stratification after PCI and stenting.

To study the effects of the angiotensin II receptor antagonist Losartan and Amlodipine on left ventricular mass (LVM), we performed blood pressure measurements and transthoracic echocardiographies at baseline. After a 4-week placebo run-in period, 25 patients with mild-to-moderate essential hypertension were randomly allocated to active treatment with Losartan 50 mg titrated to Losartan 50 mg/hydrochlorothiazide (HCT) 12.5 mg (n = 11) or Amlodipine 5 mg titrated to 10 mg (n = 14) for 16 weeks. After treatment, blood pressure decreased significantly in both groups. LVM and LVM index (mean ± SD/median) in the Losartan group at baseline were 311 ± 101/288 g and 163 ± 55/150 g/m² and decreased significantly to 252 ± 25/255 g and 133 ± 22/128 g/m² (p = 0.003 for LVM; p = 0.01 for LVM index) after 16 weeks of active treatment. In the Amlodipine group LVM and LVM index decreased from 259 ± 47/243 g and 136 ± 25/ 131 g/m² to 240 ± 42/234 g and 126 ± 24/123 g/m² (n.s.). In conclusion, LVM decreased significantly as early as 16 weeks after initiation of antihypertensive treatment with the Angiotensin II antagonist Losartan.

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