Efficacy and Safety of a Quadruple Ultra-low-dose Treatment for Hypertension

Overview

To investigate, in a double-blind randomized controlled trial, whether initiating treatment with ultra-low-dose quadruple-combination therapy ("LDQT") will lower office blood pressure more effectively, and with fewer side effects, compared to initiating standard dose monotherapy as per current guidelines in patients with hypertension. Primary hypothesis: A combination pill comprising four types of blood pressure lowering medications, each at one-quarter standard doses, will lower office blood pressure more effectively than initiating patients with standard dose monotherapy as per contemporary clinical practice guideline recommendations.

This trial will investigate whether initiating treatment with ultra-low-dose quadruple-combination therapy (LDQT; including candesartan 2 mg, amlodipine 1.25 mg, indapamide 0.625 mg, and bisoprolol 2.5 mg) will lower automated office blood pressure and 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure at 12 weeks more effectively, and with no increase in side effects, compared to initiating standard dose monotherapy (candesartan 8 mg) in adults with raised blood pressure (SBP\>130 mmHg or DBP\>80 mmHg) and without cardiovascular disease. Our preliminary data from a short-term (4-week) crossover trial of 18 participants suggest that LDQT lowers office blood pressure by 22/13 mmHg on average compared with placebo with no difference in serious adverse events. Effects on 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure were similar. The investigators will perform this phase II, single site, randomized controlled trial in a network of federally qualified health centers in Chicago because this population bears a disproportionate burden of blood pressure related diseases, and the investigators have previously successfully conducted clinical studies in this population. While the investigators hypothesize this intervention will be easily implemented and efficacious for all patients and clinicians, the investigators will explore variation in treatment effect by potential moderating variables, including age, sex, race/ethnicity, and health literacy level. Beyond examining efficacy, the investigators also plan to assess feasibility of implementing this intervention in a clinical setting by simultaneously evaluating implementation outcomes of acceptability, preferences, and lessons of LDQT among patients and clinicians.