A new pill might help people with high blood pressure and kidney problems live healthier lives.
The pill, called baxdrostat, blocks a hormone named aldosterone. This hormone can raise blood pressure and hurt the kidneys if it’s too active.
Early results from a new study suggest that baxdrostat can lower blood pressure and may also slow down damage to the kidneys. The findings were shared at an American Heart Association meeting and published in a medical journal at the same time.
The study, called FigHTN, tested the drug on people who had chronic kidney disease (CKD) and high blood pressure that wasn’t getting better with other medicines.
After taking baxdrostat, their top blood pressure number (called systolic pressure) dropped by about 5%. This number measures how hard the blood pushes against artery walls when the heart beats.
Dr. Jamie Dwyer, the main researcher from the University of Utah, explained why this is important. People with kidney disease often also have high blood pressure, and the two problems can make each other worse. High blood pressure damages the kidneys, and weak kidneys can push blood pressure even higher. This drug could help break that harmful cycle.
Baxdrostat had already shown promise in earlier studies. In those studies, people with very tough-to-treat high blood pressure took the pill once a day for three months and saw improvements.
In the new study, researchers also looked at how the drug affected kidney function. They found that people who took baxdrostat had 55% less albumin in their urine compared to people who took a fake pill (placebo). Albumin is a type of protein, and having too much of it in your urine is a warning sign that your kidneys may not be working well.
This finding gives hope that the drug may protect the kidneys in the long run, not just lower blood pressure. Two larger studies are now underway to find out more.
The study included 195 people who were around 66 years old on average. All of them had CKD but were not yet in kidney failure.
They were already taking blood pressure medicine, but their average systolic pressure was still very high—151 mm Hg. For 26 weeks, they were given either a low dose, high dose, or placebo of baxdrostat, along with their regular medicine.
The most common side effect was higher potassium levels in the blood. This happened in 41% of the people taking baxdrostat, compared to just 5% of people taking the placebo. Most of these cases were mild.
Dr. Jordana Cohen, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania, commented on the study. She said it was great to see that people with kidney disease were included in the study and that they saw benefits without serious side effects. She called the drug a “game changer” for treating high blood pressure in this group.
The study was paid for by AstraZeneca, the company that makes baxdrostat.
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