The value of ABPM and subclinical target organ damage parameters in diagnosis of resistant hypertension

Introduction: We aimed to assess the effectiveness of ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) and subclinical target organ damage parameters for diagnosis of resistant hypertension (RH). Methods: We assessed demographic and anthropometric variables, the incidence of cardiovascular events and subclinical target organ damage (n = 112). We also studied the relationship between these variables and the ABPM results. Results: Of the 112 patients referred from primary care with a diagnosis of RH, 69 (61.6%) were confirmed by ABPM. We found statistically significant differences (P < .001) between patients with RH and pseudo-resistant hypertension in the appearance of subclinical target organ damage. A percentage of 84 of the patients had microalbuminuria: 66.25 +/- 30.7 mg/dl); 44.9% had stage 3 chronic kidney disease: the average glomerular filtration was 59 ml/min/1.73 m(2); and 56.5% had left ventricular hypertrophy on echocardiography. Fundoscopy revealed that 64% of the patients had hypertensive retinopathy. Three variables were associated with an increased HR risk: microalbuminuria, hypertensive retinopathy and left ventricular hypertrophy (OR 5.7, 6.2 and 11.2, respectively). Conclusions: This study shows that the systematic testing for target organ damage, particularly in terms of albuminuria, is a simple and inexpensive tool, with a high predictive value for RH (85%), which could be useful for prioritising patients who need ABPM. (C) 2018 Sociedad Espanola de Nefrologia. Published by Elsevier Espana, S.L.U.