A Vaccine Against High Blood Pressure?
Sunday, September 23, 2007
A vaccine against high blood pressure
Can a simple vaccine jab protect you from stroke and heart disease?
Researchers think they have developed a vaccine to control high blood pressure. The vaccine is derived from a protein found in limpets and the hope is that it would need a course of just three jabs, with a booster every six months.
The commonest way of treating blood pressure at the moment is with pills, but they can cause side-effects and some patients simply stop taking them.
Now Protherics - a British drug company - says its vaccine will make it much easier for people to control their blood pressure.
The jab, which has been successfully tested on people, uses the limpet protein to attack a hormone called angiotensin, which is produced by the liver. This is similar to the way that medicines like lisinopril, ramipril and perindopril work.
People who have tried the new vaccine have suffered few side-effects, although one in ten did complain of a brief, flu-like illness. Ideally, patients would be given an initial course of three injections, with a week or fortnight between each jab. A booster shot every six months, or even once a year, would keep blood pressure low.
It is not known how much the vaccines will cost but they are not expected to be much more expensive than current blood pressure tablets, some of which cost just a few pence a day.
In time, the vaccine may be given to ward off problems in young men and women with a family history of heart disease.
Some blood pressure tablets already available work by targeting angiotensin, either by cutting production of the hormone or by stopping it from working properly. But many people stop taking the daily tablets simply because there are no obvious signs that they are boosting their health.
Can a simple vaccine jab protect you from stroke and heart disease?
Researchers think they have developed a vaccine to control high blood pressure. The vaccine is derived from a protein found in limpets and the hope is that it would need a course of just three jabs, with a booster every six months.
The commonest way of treating blood pressure at the moment is with pills, but they can cause side-effects and some patients simply stop taking them.
Now Protherics - a British drug company - says its vaccine will make it much easier for people to control their blood pressure.
The jab, which has been successfully tested on people, uses the limpet protein to attack a hormone called angiotensin, which is produced by the liver. This is similar to the way that medicines like lisinopril, ramipril and perindopril work.
People who have tried the new vaccine have suffered few side-effects, although one in ten did complain of a brief, flu-like illness. Ideally, patients would be given an initial course of three injections, with a week or fortnight between each jab. A booster shot every six months, or even once a year, would keep blood pressure low.
It is not known how much the vaccines will cost but they are not expected to be much more expensive than current blood pressure tablets, some of which cost just a few pence a day.
In time, the vaccine may be given to ward off problems in young men and women with a family history of heart disease.
Some blood pressure tablets already available work by targeting angiotensin, either by cutting production of the hormone or by stopping it from working properly. But many people stop taking the daily tablets simply because there are no obvious signs that they are boosting their health.
Labels: blood-pressure-medicines, blood-pressure-treatment, high blood pressure, treatment, vaccine-for-blood-pressure
We've added a new How To Lower Blood Pressure section to the site - check it out today ...and there's also a new page devoted to Foods That Lower Blood Pressure
You can also find more information about more natural blood pressure remedies on Doctor Cameron's new site. Just click on the link for details and join in the discussion or share your experiences.
