Stricter blood pressure control reduces rate of left ventricular hypertrophy and diastolic dysfunction in ethnic minority groups in the UK:E-ECHOES study

Abstract Funding Acknowledgements Type of funding sources: Foundation. Main funding source(s): British Heart Foundation (PG/05/036) Primary Care Research Network-Central England. Background Blood pressure (BP, mmHg) targets have been mainly determined based on the white ethnic group. Optimal BP levels have been less established in people of South Asian and African Caribbean origin. There is less data on how different office BP values influence the presence of cardiac target organ damage, left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and diastolic dysfunction (DD). Methods This study is based on the large prospective UK community Ethnic-Echocardiographic Heart of England Screening Study (E-ECHOES, South Asian and African-Caribbean origin, age ≥45 years). Echocardiography was used to diagnose LVH and DD following British Echocardiographic Society criteria. Optimal receiver operator curves (ROC) cut-off values for predicting LVH and DD were determined using the Leu method. Multivariable logistic regression, adjusted for age and sex, was used to determine the effects of different BP values for LVH and DD, using SBP 130-<140 and DBP 80-<90 as comparators (STATA 13). Results The study included 3200 South Asians (age 59±10, 52% women), of whom 1568 (49%) had LVH, and 1497 (47%) had diastolic dysfunction. Of people with LVH, 869 (55%) had SBP >140, and 372 (24%) had DBP >90. The optimal BP cut-off for ROC analysis was 139/80.5 for LVH and 139/80.5 for diastolic dysfunction. SBP <130 and DBP <80 were both associated with a 31% reduction in diastolic dysfunction (Table). BP ≥140/90 was strongly predictive of LVH and DD. The study included 1922 African Caribbeans (62±12 age, 55% women), of whom 1186 (62%) had LVH and 1124 (58%) had DD. Of people with LVH, 778 (66%) had SBP >140, and 333 (28%) had DBP >90. The optimal BP cut-off for ROC analysis were 139/81.5 for LVH and 138/80.5 for DD. DBP <80 mmHg 27% reduction in LVH and 24% in DD (Table). BP ≥140/90 was strongly predictive of LVH and DD. Conclusions People of South Asian origin may benefit from stricter SBP (<130) control, and both ethnic groups may benefit from stricter DBP (<80) control.