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Objective This study aimed to investigate the antihypertensive goal achievement rate for office blood pressure (OBP) and the rate of clinical inertia (inertia) as factors for non-achievement in hypertensive patients in 2020. After documenting these results in the medical records, we observed changes in the achievement rate of the OBP goals in 2020 and 2022. Methods In Study 1, the participants were 517 outpatients (mean age 68.6±13.2 years, 54% women) who visited the Division of Hypertension regularly between March and September 2020. We investigated the achievement rate of OBP goals during that period and confirmed the prevalence of inertia as a possible factor for failure to achieve OBP goals. In Study 2, the participants were 308 who visited the division, and who had at least one condition for which an OBP of <130/80 should be targeted in both 2020 and 2022 (mean age 66.6±12.4 years, 50% of women in 2020). We investigated the trends in the achievement of OBP for the same period in both years. Results The rate of achievement of the OBP goals in 2020 was 48%. Inertia accounted for 14% of the non-achievement factors. The OBP significantly decreased in 2022 in comparison to 2020. The achievement rate of OBP goals showed an increasing trend from 45% in 2020 to 52% in 2022. Conclusion Attending physicians' awareness of unmet antihypertensive goals can help them overcome inertia and improve blood pressure control in patients.
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BACKGROUND: Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) reportedly have a high prevalence of aortic valve calcification (AVC). In population-based studies, AVC is considered a manifestation of systemic atherosclerosis. The association of AVC with atherosclerotic lesions has not been fully investigated in predialysis patients. The present study was performed to determine whether carotid artery lesions and peripheral artery disease (PAD) are associated with AVC in patients with CKD not on dialysis. METHODS: In total, 749 patients were included in this cross-sectional study. AVC was evaluated using echocardiography. Carotid artery lesions including carotid artery plaque (CAP) and PAD were simultaneously examined in each patient. A logistic regression analysis was applied to determine the factors associated with AVC. RESULTS: AVC, CAP, and PAD were found in 201, 583, and 123 patients, respectively. In the multivariable analyses adjusted for covariates including the estimated glomerular filtration rate and makers of mineral metabolism (serum calcium, serum phosphorus, parathyroid hormone, 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D, and fibroblast growth factor 23), AVC was significantly associated with the presence of CAP [odds ratio (OR), 3.37; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.43-7.95], the presence of PAD (OR, 1.76; 95% CI, 1.10-2.81), the CAP score (per 1.0-point increase) (OR, 1.06; 95% CI, 1.02-1.11), and the ankle-brachial blood pressure index (per 0.1-point increase) (OR, 0.83; 95% CI, 0.72-0.95). CONCLUSIONS: AVC was associated with atherosclerotic lesions independent of kidney function and mineral metabolism. We consider that this association between AVC and atherosclerosis might reflect the burden of shared atherosclerotic risk factors.
