"To our knowledge, this randomized treatment trial is the first to observe a significant difference in serious outcomes among women of different ethnic makeup," they wrote.
INVEST (International VErapamil(Drug information on verapamil) SR/Trandolapril STudy) randomized 22,576 participants to verapamil sustained release plus the ACE-inhibitor trandolapril(Drug information on trandolapril) (Mavik) as needed or atenolol(Drug information on atenolol) plus hydrochlorothiazide(Drug information on hydrochlorothiazide). There was no difference in the primary endpoint of cardiovascular events or blood pressure control.
In the current analysis, the researchers compared outcomes of 5,017 Hispanic women with 4,710 non-Hispanic white women.
At baseline the Hispanic women were on average about three years younger than the non-Hispanic whites, and were more likely to have diabetes, angina, and peripheral artery disease (P<0.001 for all). But they were less likely to have hypercholesterolemia, and fewer were smokers (P<0.001 for both) than non-Hispanic whites.
