New Twice-Yearly Injections May 'Help Millions' With High Blood Pressure

As part of a global trial called KARDIA-2, researchers injected people with hard-to-treat high blood pressure with a medication called zilebesiran. 

This is designed to be administered every six months.

It was given to 663 people with poorly-managed hypertension (high blood pressure) alongside their existing treatment. 

The participants’ hypertension was not well managed with their existing medication. 

The results, published in JAMA Network, suggest these injections may have the potential to “help millions with high blood pressure”, Queen Mary University of London, whose researchers led the study, said.

What did the injections do? 

In this study, participants were given a dose of zilebesiran alongside their usual treatment. 

Zilebesiran stops the production of a protein called angiotensinogen in the liver. Blocking that protein helps blood vessels to relax, thus lowering blood pressure.

The hypertension of the participants in this study was better-managed with the assistance of angiotensinogen injections alongside the “normal” medication, which, for one reason or another, was not working optimally for them. 

The drug, which is far longer-lasting than medication which patients may have to take daily, matters because blood pressure is both hard to spot and vital to consistently treat. 

It can lead to heart attacks and strokes if left unmanaged. It usually has no symptoms and is “very common,” the NHS said.

It affects about one in three UK adults. 

What’s next? 

KARDIA-3, a follow-up project, will investigate the effects of zilebesiran on people with high blood pressure and established cardiovascular disease, as well as people at risk of heart conditions.

And a large global outcomes study is set later this year to see how it affects stroke, heart disease, and cardiovascular event risk.

The study’s lead investigator, Dr Manish Saxena, said: “Hypertension is a global health concern as blood pressure control rates remain poor and is a leading cause of heart attacks and strokes.

“This study demonstrates the efficacy and safety of zilebesiran when added to commonly used first-line blood pressure-lowering drugs. The novelty of this treatment is its long duration; giving just one injection every six months could help millions of patients to better manage their condition.”