The Time (8/13, Blue) "Wellness" blog reported, "Pricey drugs to reduce blood pressure appear no better at preventing heart disease than cheap, generic diuretics, which have been around for decades," according to research presented at the China Heart Congress and International Heart Forum. In a follow-up report on the landmark Antihypertensive and Lipid-Lowering Treatment to Prevent Heart Attack (ALLHAT) Trial, data after 8-13 years continued to support the use of chlorthalidone. Earlier evidence of an advantage of the diuretic over an ACE inhibitor in regard to stroke was no longer seen, though chlorthalidone continued to hold an advantage over amlodipine in respect to congestive heart failure.
HealthDay (8/13, Preidt) reported, "Data from (ALLHAT) released in 2002 showed that after four to eight years of follow-up, the diuretic was better than the calcium blocker in preventing heart failure and better than the ACE inhibitor in preventing stroke, heart failure and overall cardiovascular disease." MedPage Today (8/13, Phend) also covered the story.
