NBC News reports that people who struggle with uncontrolled blood pressure could benefit from an experimental drug. The new study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine and presented at the American Heart Association annual meeting. Patients who took a daily dose of baxdrostat significantly reduced their blood pressure, as compared with those who received a placebo. A newly developed type of oral medication targets a hormone that regulates salt levels in the body.
How was the new drug developed?
Dr. Morris Brown, a professor of endocrine hypertension at Queen Mary University of London, was interviewed by the NBC News. He told the reporters that around 10 million people do respond to available hypertensive medications. According to Brown, 20% to 30% of adults have high blood pressure. 5% to 10% of all hypertensive patients have uncontrolled hypertension.
There are people with uncontrolled blood pressure who do not benefit from commonly used medications. Their hypertension is mainly caused by aldosterone, a hormone that controls salt retention. The similarity between aldosterone and cortisol makes it difficult to reduce them directly. By blocking an enzyme required for aldosterone production, the newly developed medication solves that problem.
Researchers recruited 274 patients despite taking at least three hypertension medications in the U.S. to test the safety and effectiveness of varying doses of baxdrostat.
What is Participants in the phase 2 trial received one of three doses of the new drug or a placebo, along with the medications they were already taking. Those who received the highest dose of the medication saw their systolic blood pressure — the top number in the measure — drop an extraordinary 20 points during the study.
What is baxdrostat?
Baxdrostat is the first contender in a new drug class that inhibits the enzyme that makes aldosterone rather than blocking the mineralocorticoid receptor, which is how spironolactone works.
Participants in the phase 2 trial received one of three doses of the new drug or a placebo, along with the medications they were already taking. Those who received the highest dose of the medication saw their systolic blood pressure — the top number in the measure — drop an extraordinary 20 points during the study.
