[Therapy of hypertension 2004--quo vadis?].
Management of hypertension, at the beginning of the new millennium, persists in being a difficult, demanding and responsible task. Beta blockers and diuretics reduce mortality, stroke and coronary disease in patients suffering from arterial hypertension. Newer antihypertensive drugs which block the renin angiotensin system, such as angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs), may have additional benefits in high-risk individuals with normal blood pressure. The additional benefit has been confirmed in LIFE and ANBP2 studies. In HOPE study, application of the ACE inhibitors in high-risk patients with "normal" BP values resulted in reduction of major cardiovascular events. Problem of adherence to therapy also continues to be one of the most important problems in management of hypertension. The success of antihypertensive management is directly proportional to the adherence to therapy. The new European guidelines for the management of arterial hypertension and JNC 7 recommendations offer a rational and effective approach to management of hypertension. These two documents contain a series of new attitudes, and reminded of some old and opened some new questions.