The TALENT Study

Current guidelines on antihypertensive treatment emphasize the importance of combination drug treatment for achieving a full blood pressure control. The TALENT Study, involving more than 400 high-risk hypertensive patients, aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety profile of nifedipine gastrointestinal therapeutic system (GITS) 20 mg/telmisartan 80 mg combination, as compared to the single monotherapies. After 8 weeks, ambulatory blood pressure values were significantly more reduced by the combination treatment than by single monotherapies. These potentiated blood-pressure-lowering effects were mirrored by a higher trough-to-peak ratio and smoothness index. They were also accompanied by: i) significantly greater blood pressure (particularly systolic) control; ii) a greater ability of combination drug treatment to achieve a controlled blood pressure at a time earlier than that found in single monotherapies; and iii) a better side-effects profile.