UTMC research will change how doctors treat some patients with hypertension.

11/18/2013

DALLAS – Researchers from the University of Toledo Medical Center made a major announcement at a scientific conference today that will change the way doctors treat some patients with hypertension.

Dr. Christopher Cooper, chairman of the department of medicine at the former Medical College of Ohio, led a team of global researchers who were trying to determine the best way to treat a high risk group of patients with high blood pressure that is caused by a blockage in the artery that feeds the kidney.

The researchers tracked about 1,000 patients for nearly a decade, including about 34 from the Toledo area. One group was treated with medication, while the second group received medication plus surgery to insert a stent to clear the blocked artery.

“What we found after following folks for an average of almost four years is that there was no real difference in the outcome with or without the stent,” Dr. Cooper said.

The results of this research show that surgery is not necessary to treat this condition and will save patients time and money and protect them from the risks associated with surgery, he said.

The results from this study will also be published in the New England Journal of Medicine.