Device found to lower blood pressure

A revolutionary device has been shown to significantly lower blood pressure among patients with uncontrolled high blood pressure, compared to those treated with usual drug measures – according to research involving the University and published in The Lancet.

The device – developed by ROX Medical and named the ‘Coupler’ – is a paper clip sized implant which is inserted between the artery and vein in the upper thigh, in a procedure lasting around 40 minutes under local anaesthetic.

Researchers, led by Queen Mary University, London carried out a randomised, blinded endpoint clinical trial with patients from multiple European Centres of Hypertension all of whom had resistant high blood pressure and had not responded to at least three types of drug treatment.

The University and NIHR Leicester Cardiovascular Biomedical Research Unit, based at Glenfield Hospital, have identified that there was a clear unmet need with current therapies to manage patients with treatment resistant hypertension. The results from this trial demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in all measures of blood pressure monitoring (Office BP, Ambulatory BP and Home BP). In addition, the number of hypertensive complications and hospital admissions for high blood pressure were significantly reduced in the treatment arm

The study findings show that blood pressure treatment with the ROX Coupler can give both patients and doctors an alternative option for treating high blood pressure in the future – particularly when standard therapies have failed. The study has also put the spotlight on how dangerous uncontrolled high blood pressure truly is.