Effects of telmisartan on the cerebral circulation of hypertensive patients with chronic-stage stroke

This prospective study examined the effects of telmisartan, an angiotensin II type I receptor blocker with peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma agonistic action, on blood pressure (BP) control and cerebral circulation in hypertensive patients with chronic-stage stroke. Telmisartan (40 mg per day) was administered to 10 patients with systolic BP (SBP) 140 mm Hg and diastolic BP (DBP) 90 mm Hg at least 4 weeks after lacunar or atherothrombotic infarction. Casual BP and resting cerebral blood flow (CBF) were evaluated at baseline and week 12 using technetium-99 m ethyl cysteinate dimer single-photon emission computed tomography. Both SBP and DBP declined significantly from 156.4±17.0 to 127.4±6.6 mm Hg and 84.2±14.5 to 74.2±5.2 mm Hg, respectively (P