East meets West: Bringing the ESH 2023 hypertension guidelines into Asia.

Hypertension remains a major problem worldwide, especially across the Asia-Pacific region, which reports high prevalence rates and slow improvements in treatment rate and blood pressure (BP) control rate. Asian patients with hypertension may also vary with regard to phenotype and the epidemiology of the complications of hypertension, especially when compared with Western patients. Given these differences, Western guidelines may not necessarily be applicable to countries in the Asia Pacific. This narrative review aims to provide a critical comparison between the recently published European Society of Hypertension (ESH) 2023 guidelines and existing local guidelines in select Asian countries, offer expert opinion on how to fill gaps in the ESH 2023 guidelines for hypertension in the Asian context, and examine the need for harmonisation of hypertension guidelines worldwide. This review focuses on the definition and diagnosis of hypertension, the treatment thresholds and targets, and recommendations on the use of pharmacotherapy.

Dual versus mono antiplatelet therapy for acute non- cardio embolic ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack, an efficacy and safety analysis - updated meta-analysis.

BACKGROUND: New evidence on the efficacy and safety of dual antiplatelet therapy for secondary stroke prevention have been realized in the recent years. An updated meta analysis was done to determine the effect of the various dual antiplatelets vs aspirin alone on recurrence rate of ischemic stroke, cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, and its safety profile as reported through major bleeding. METHODS: PubMed, Cochrane and Science Direct data bases were utilized, RCTs evaluating dual antiplatelet vs mono antiplatelet therapy for acute ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack within < 72 h from ictus were searched up to July 2019. Risk ratio at 95% confidence intervals were calculated to evaluate stroke recurrence, cardiac events and mortality, and major bleeding. RESULTS: Sixteen randomized controlled trials with a population of 28, 032 patients were pooled into a meta-analysis. Dual antiplatelet therapy was significantly superior over mono antiplatelet therapy in the reduction of stroke (RR 0.75, 95% CI:0.68-0.83, p value< 0.00001) and composite events namely cardiovascular morbidity and mortality (0.73 95% CI: 0.65-0.82, p value < 0.00001), while bleeding events were noted to be not significant (1.22 95% CI: 0.87-1.70, p value = 0.25). CONCLUSION: In acute non-cardioembolic ischemic strokes or those who have suffered a transient ischemic attack, dual antiplatelet therapy was associated with efficacy in stroke recurrence and composite cardiac events, with a non-significant risk of major bleeding.

The Asia-Pacific Society of Cardiology (APSC) Expert Committee Consensus Recommendations for Assessment of Suspected Acute Coronary Syndrome Using High-Sensitivity Cardiac Troponin T in the Emergency Department.

The Asia-Pacific Society of Cardiology (APSC) high-sensitivity troponin T (hs-TnT) consensus recommendations and rapid algorithm were developed to provide guidance for healthcare professionals in the Asia-Pacific region on assessing patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome (ACS) using a hs-TnT assay. Experts from Asia-Pacific convened in 2 meetings to develop evidence-based consensus recommendations and an algorithm for appropriate use of the hs-TnT assay. The Expert Committee defined a cardiac troponin assay as a high-sensitivity assay if the total imprecision is ≤10% at the 99th percentile of the upper reference limit and measurable concentrations below the 99th percentile are attainable with an assay at a concentration value above the assay's limit of detection for at least 50% of healthy individuals. Recommendations for single-measurement rule-out/rule-in cutoff values, as well as for serial measurements, were also developed. The Expert Committee also adopted similar hs-TnT cutoff values for men and women, recommended serial hs-TnT measurements for special populations, and provided guidance on the use of point-of-care troponin T devices in individuals suspected of ACS. These recommendations should be used in conjunction with all available clinical evidence when making the diagnosis of ACS.