Hypertension (high blood pressure) is a leading cause of stroke, cardiovascular and kidney disease. In most individuals with hypertension blood pressure can be managed through lifestyle changes and with drug therapies. However, a sub-group of those with hypertension have treatment-resistant hypertension. Resistant hypertension is elevated, above target blood pressure (140/90 mmHg, 130/80 mmHg in patients with diabetes, and 150/90 mmHg for patients over 80 years of age) that persists despite lifestyle and diet modifications and optimal doses of at least three concurrent antihypertensive agents of different categories, including a diuretic. Renal denervation is a catheter-based procedure that ablates afferent and efferent nerves in the renal arteries to decrease sympathetic nervous system activity and reduce blood pressure. The review of the safety and efficacy/effectiveness of RDN included 27 studies. Based on these studies, RDN using the Symplicity system appeared to be safe and well tolerated. The cost-effectiveness (specifically, cost-utility) of RDN was addressed in two published economic analyses and four conference abstracts, all originating from two industry-supported economic models. Both models were designed to assess the lifetime costs and consequences of treatment with RDN in a hypothetical patient population with an average age of approximately 60 years.
- Pages
- 142
- Published in
- Ottawa, Ontario
