TABLE 1.
Baseline characteristics of trial participants
| Variable | All patients | Placebo | Allopurinol | P value |
| Total patients | n = 62 | n = 30 | n = 32 | |
| Mean age (years) | 65.9 ± 9.4 | 65.4 ± 9.0 | 66.4 ± 9.9 | 0.561 |
| Male | 38 (61) | 18 (60) | 20 (63) | 0.840 |
| BMI (kg/m2) | 30.9 ± 5.1 | 31.1 ± 5.3 | 30.7 ± 5.0 | 0.754 |
| Daytime SBP (mmHg) ABPM/home monitoring | 124.8 ± 8.3 | 125.3 ± 7.5 | 124.3 ± 9.0 | 0.620 |
| Daytime DBP (mmHg) ABPM/home monitoring | 73.5 ± 8.7 | 74.1 ± 7.2 | 73.0 ± 10.0 | 0.624 |
| Duration of HTN (years) | 12.7 ± 8.8 | 13.4 ± 10.0 | 12.0 ± 7.6 | 0.553 |
| IHD | 2 (3) | 0 (0) | 2 (9) | 0.164 |
| Dyslipidaemia | 27 (44) | 14 (47) | 13 (41) | 0.632 |
| CVA/TIA | 7 (11) | 4 (13) | 3 (9) | 0.623 |
| DM | 4 (6) | 3 (10) | 1 (3) | 0.271 |
| PVD | 1 (1) | 1 (3) | 0 (0) | 0.298 |
| Smoker | 4 (6) | 3 | 1 | 0.521 |
| Ex-smoker | 27 (44) | 12 | 15 | |
| Never smoked | 31 (50) | 15 | 16 | |
| ACE-I | 29 (47) | 16 (53) | 13 (41) | 0.316 |
| ARB | 24 (39) | 10 (33) | 14 (44) | 0.400 |
| B blocker | 18 (29) | 6 (20) | 12 (38) | 0.129 |
| CCB | 44 (71) | 22 (73) | 22 (69) | 0.691 |
| α blocker | 14 (23) | 6 (20) | 8 (25) | 0.638 |
| Thiazide diuretic | 23 (37) | 13 (43) | 10 (31) | 0.325 |
| Loop diuretic | 5 (8) | 3 (10) | 2 (6) | 0.588 |
| MRA | 4 (7) | 2 (7) | 2 (6) | 0.947 |
| Centrally acting anti-hypertensive | 1 (2) | 0 (0) | 1 (3) | 0.329 |
| Renin blocker | 1 (2) | 1 (3) | 0 (0) | 0.298 |
| Number of antihypertensive medications | 2.6 ± 1.2 | 2.6 ± 1.2 | 2.6 ± 1.3 | 0.979 |
| Resistant hypertension | 14 (23) | 6 (20) | 8 (25) | 0.638 |
| Haemoglobin (g/l) | 140.8 ± 12.8 | 140.2 ± 12.0 | 141.3 ± 13.7 | 0.736 |
| Creatinine (mmol/l) | 71.2 ± 13.5 | 73.0 ± 10.9 | 69.6 ± 15.5 | 0.315 |
| Glucose (mmol/l) | 5.6 ± 0.9 | 5.4 ± 0.8 | 5.8 ± 1.0 | 0.70 |
| Urate (μmol/l) | 362.2 ± 96.7 | 367.3 ± 81.5 | 357.3 ± 110.1 | 0.690 |
| HsCRP (mg/l) | 2.4 ± 3.3 | 2.6 ± 3.7 | 2.3 ± 3.0 | 0.770 |
| TBARs (μmol/l) | 2.8 ± 0.9 | 2.9 ± 1.0 | 2.7 ± 0.8 | 0.342 |
| NTproBNP (ρg/ml) | 792.0 ± 891.5 | 617.8 ± 583.3 | 960.5 ± 1095.9 | 0.133 |
| PICP (ng/l) | 1.6 ± 0.9 | 1.7 ± 1.0 | 1.5 ± 0.7 | 0.269 |
| Soluble ST2 (ng/ml) | 19.9 ± 9.9 | 19.7 ± 8.1 | 20.2 ± 11.6 | 0.834 |
| Echo LVMI (g/m2) | 125.9 ± 18.7 | 127.1 ± 21.0 | 124.8 ± 16.5 | 0.625 |
| MRI LVM (g) | 131.3 ± 36.7 | 132.5 ± 35.2 | 130.3 ± 38.5 | 0.812 |
| MRI LVM Height1.7 (g/m1.7) | 53.2 ± 11.8 | 54.3 ± 11.9 | 52.2 ± 11.7 | 0.489 |
| MRI EDV (ml) | 143.5 ± 34.4 | 142.5 ± 38.0 | 144.6 ± 31.2 | 0.815 |
| MRI ESV (ml) | 36.9 ± 16.1 | 36.6 ± 18.9 | 37.3 ± 13.3 | 0.862 |
| MRI SV (ml) | 106.6 ± 21.6 | 105.9 ± 22.6 | 107.3 ± 20.9 | 0.807 |
| MRI ejection Fraction (%) | 75.1 ± 6.1 | 75.5 ± 7.2 | 74.7 ± 4.9 | 0.604 |
| FMD (%) | 5.4 ± 3.5 | 4.9 ± 3.2 | 5.8 ± 3.8 | 0.330 |
| AIx (%) | 22.3 ± 13.5 | 21.2 ± 12.7 | 23.3 ± 14.4 | 0.534 |
| PWV (m/s) | 8.4 ± 1.2 | 8.2 ± 1.1 | 8.5 ± 1.4 | 0.359 |
Values are n, mean ± SD, or n (%). ABPM, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring; ACEI, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor; AIx, augmentation index; ARB, angiotensin receptor blocker; CCB, calcium channel blocker; CVA, cerebrovascular accident; DM, diabetes mellitus; EDV, end-diastolic volume; ESV, end-systolic volume; FMD, flow-mediated dilation; HsCRP, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein; IHD, ischaemic heart disease; LVM, left ventricular mass; MRA, magnetic resonance angiogram; NTproBNP, N-terminal pro B natriuretic peptide; PICP, N-terminal pro b-type natriuretic peptide; PVD, peripheral vascular disease; PWV, pulse wave velocity; SV, stroke volume; TBARs, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances; TIA, transient ischemic attack.