Patients who need therapy to reduce hypertension after suffering a stroke do not seem to be at greater risk of bleeding or other adverse outcomes following anti-clotting therapy, it has been suggested.

A report published in the September issue of Archives of Neurology and carried out by staff at the University of Texas Health Centre in the USA reviewed the medical records of 178 patients with acute ischemic stroke who received tissue plasminogen activator (tPA) within three hours.

Of these participants, 50 required treatment to lower their blood pressure before beginning the therapy.

This included 24 who received the drug nicardipine either alone or in tandem with the medication labetalol.

After controlling for factors including blood glucose levels, age and baseline stroke severity, it was found there were no differences between subjects who received anti-hypertensive treatment and those who did not in terms of adverse effects.

The researchers commented: "Aggressive control of severely elevated blood pressure is feasible and should not automatically exclude otherwise eligible patients with acute ischemic stroke from receiving thrombolytic therapy."

Login and visit the Hypertension Knowledge Centre

• Hypertension at medical offices may not predict heart risks, says study 25/11/08
• Hypertension develops early in black men, study suggests 17/11/08
• Hypertension "a looming problem in Europe", study shows 12/11/08
• Study links hypertension in pregnancy to reduced testicular cancer risk 30/10/08
• Audio relaxation could help elderly people with hypertension, study suggests 18/09/08

• REVATIO 20 mg film-coated tablets - 49.42%
  Treatment of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension classified as WHO functional class III, to improve exercise capacity. Efficacy has been shown in primary pulmonary hypertension and pulmonary hypertension associated with connective tissue disease ...
  
  
• THELIN Film-coated Tablets - 49.42%
  Treatment of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension classified as WHO functional class III, to improve exercise capacity. Efficacy has been shown in primary pulmonary hypertension and in pulmonary hypertension associated with connective tissue disease ...
  
  
• ACCUPRO Tablets - 48.68%
  Hypertension - For the treatment of all grades of essential hypertension. Accupro is effective as monotherapy or concomitantly with diuretics in patients with hypertension. Congestive Heart Failure - For the treatment of congestive heart failure when given concomitantly with a diuretic and/or ...
  
  
• APRESOLINE (hypertension) - 48.56%
  Apresoline Injection: Hypertensive emergencies Hypertensive emergencies especially those associated with pre-eclampsia and toxaemia of pregnancy, hypertension with renal complications. Apresoline: Adjunct to other antihypertensives in moderate to severe hypertension ...
  
  
• CARDURA Tablets - 48.07%
  Hypertension:Cardura is indicated for the treatment of hypertension and can be used as the sole agent to control blood pressure in the majority of patients. In patients inadequately controlled on single antihypertensive therapy, Cardura may be used in combination with a thiazide diuretic, beta ...
  
  
• BETOPTIC - 47.95%
  Betoptic and Betoptic Drops: Ocular hypertension, chronic open-angle glaucoma. Betopic Suspension Single Dose: Ocular hypertension, chronic open-angle glaucoma in patients who are hypersensitive to preservatives ...