Medical devices treating hypertension mixing arterial and venous blood: A hopeless dream

Medical devices treating hypertension mixing arterial and venous blood: A hopeless dream

 

Successful treatment of hypertension is difficult despite the availability of several classes of antihypertensive drug, and the value of strategies to combat the effect of adverse lifestyle behaviors on blood pressure. I have made an effort to showcase my ideas on the chronic hypertension. There are 3 categories that need to be understood before treating these patients.

1)      patients who are non-compliant to drug ( who do not take drugs regularly, when taken the drug works and hypertension is controlled)

2)      Patients who take the drug but the drug effects have worn out ( when medications are changed they respond)

3)      Patients who do not respond to any treatment. ( approx 1in 20 are non –respondent)

The market for all three catagories is $2 B.

Mistakes made earlier by large med device companies was to acquire the technologies without accessing the true market. 

In my opinion there are two promising treatments to explore: 1) new pharmacological classes (such as vasopeptidase inhibitors and aldosterone synthase inhibitors) and new molecules from present pharmacological classes with additional properties in blood-pressure or metabolism pathways 2) stimulation of arterial baroreceptors and catheter-based renal denervation.

And, there are others that are dreaming to show some hand waving results.  I have interviewed patients in clinical trials and have seen patients suffering. One of the worst technologies is mixing arterial blood to venous blood using a shunt that connect femoral vein to artery. One expert physician said, "The patient has chance of Right Heart Failure, swollen legs, bleeding during procedure, tons of other issues". Obviously, if you convert a high pressure arterial flow and divert it to the veins there will be a obvious pressure drop. But, in return patients potentially suffer all the problems of venous stasis, fatigue, right heart enlargement  my suggestion to the participants of the clinical trials, guys just take your medicines on time , you will not suffer with these experimental devices.  It’s a waste of time, money and effort. Worst of all is the suffering.  Once a mobile patients may be dealing with a arterial/venous mis-match. swollen legs and heart failure". Overcoming hypertension is a dream for these device makers, but it’s a Nightmare! for patients.