Patients with resistant hypertension have more peripheral arterial disease than other uncontrolled hypertensives.

The aim of this study was to investigate whether resistant hypertension differs from uncontrolled and controlled hypertension in terms of target organ damage. Hypertensive subjects with antihypertensive medication (n=385) were identified in a population survey conducted in southwestern Finland. None of the study subjects had previously diagnosed cardiovascular or renal disease or diabetes. Ankle-brachial index, estimated glomerular filtration rate, electrocardiogram-determined left ventricular hypertrophy and cardiometabolic risk factors were assessed. The prevalence of peripheral arterial disease among subjects with resistant, uncontrolled and controlled hypertension was 6/37 (16%), 22/275 (8%) and 0/73 (0%), respectively (P=0.006). There were no differences in the prevalence of renal insufficiency, left ventricular hypertrophy or metabolic parameters between the groups. Resistant hypertension affects vasculature more than uncontrolled hypertension, and thus it can be regarded as a marker of more severe disease.