One-a-day heart attack and stroke pill

AN international human trial of a one-a-day pill that could cut the risk of heart attacks and strokes begins today, as Irish research reveals that a third of people with high blood pressure forget to take their tablets.

Patients with high blood pressure take around four tablets a day because they are often being treated for other conditions. One in three said they frequently or occasionally forgot to take their medication.

The Irish Heart Foundation said the new research published yesterday, World Hypertension Day, might explain why 70% of patients on medication for blood pressure do not have the condition adequately controlled.

The research, commissioned by pharmaceutical company Novartis to highlight a new blood pressure awareness campaign in Ireland, also reveals that eight out 10 people would prefer to take fewer tablets.

The new low-cost polypill is a single tablet that combines drugs such as aspirin, a statin to lower cholesterol and two blood pressure lowering medicines.

High blood pressure, or hypertension, is a very common disorder in Ireland and about half of Irish adults over 50 have the condition. Every year, more than 10,000 people in Ireland have a stroke.

Researchers involved in the testing of the Red Heart Pill are now recruiting 2,000 volunteers who are at high risk of heart attack or stroke, or who have already had a cardiovascular event.

The trial, called UMPIRE (Use of a Multidrug Pill In Reducing cardiovascular Events) was launched yesterday in Ireland, Britain, The Netherlands. Testing will also be conducted in India once regulatory approval has been given. The researchers will be investigating whether patients are more likely to stick with a preventive treatment regime using a single, one-a-day pill, rather than multiple tablets. Scientists will also be investigating whether the pill is effective at reducing blood pressure and lowering cholesterol.

Related trials began earlier in the year in New Zealand and Australia and there are plans for further trials in Brazil, Canada, China and South Africa.

Prof Alice Stanton of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, the lead Irish investigator involved in the study, said the polypills were already used to successfully treat other diseases like TB and HIV.

* Novartis has launched a new text service that reminds people to take their medicine on time. It is available by visiting www.dontforget.ie.