University of Miami Division of Clinical Pharmacology Therapeutic Rounds: managing hypertension in patients with kidney disease-implications for preservation of renal function

Abstract

Renal parenchymal hypertension is defined as hypertension caused by disease of the kidneys. Impaired renal sodium excretion leading to extracellular fluid volume (ECFV) expansion is the most clinically important mechanism leading to hypertension in patients with kidney disease. Most patients with renal parenchymal hypertension have sodium-sensitive hypertension, and, consequently, sodium restriction and loop diuretics constitute the initial steps in effective antihypertensive therapy in patients with renal disease. The loop diuretics (furosemide, ethacrynic acid, bumetanide, torasemide) are used for the management of ECFV and hypertension in patients with renal disease because thiazide diuretics are generally not effective in patients with serum creatinine values above 2.0 mg/dL or creatinine clearances below 30 mL/min. The Joint National Committee VI recommends the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors in patients with hypertension and chronic renal disease to control hypertension and to slow progressive renal failure. Antihypertensive treatment with ACE inhibitors may favorably alter renal hemodynamics, thereby slowing the progression of renal dysfunction. ACE inhibitors have been found to be useful agents in preventing the progression of renal disease in the settings of established insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) nephropathy, non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (NIDDM) nephropathy, IDDM patients with normal blood pressures and microalbuminuria, NIDDM patients with microalbuminuria and normal renal function, and a variety of non-diabetic renal diseases, especially in the setting of significant proteinuria. Calcium antagonists are effective for treating hypertensive patients with chronic renal impairment, and the initial results for calcium antagonists and for combination calcium antagonist-ACE inhibitor therapy have been encouraging. Although promising, the calcium antagonists and the new angiotensin II antagonists have not been studied as intensively as ACE inhibitors in regard to their ability to slow the progression of renal insufficiency.