Research Communications of the 27(th) ECVIM-CA Congress: Intercontinental, Saint Julian's, Malta, 14th to 16th September 2017

A.M. Glaus 1 , J. Elliott 2 , B. Albrecht 3 . 1 University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland, 2 Department of Comparative Biomedical Sciences, Royal Veterinary College, Univers, London, UK, 3 Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica GmbH, Ingelheim, Germany Hypertension (HT) and the associated risk of target organ damage (TOD) is a well-recognized cardiovascular problem of elderly cats. Consequently, early recognition and treatment of HT are crucial. This prospective, multicentre, placebo controlled, blinded study evaluated telmisartan in hypertensive cats diagnosed with systolic blood pressure (SBP) ≥160 mmHg on two days. HT causes were classified as chronic kidney disease (CKD), controlled hyperthyroidism, both combined and idiopathic. Cats with SBP>200 mmHg, evidence of TOD or pre-treated with vasoactive substances were excluded. Cats were randomized (2:1 ratio) to either receive 2 mg/ kg telmisartan oral solution, or placebo q24 h. The study consisted of a 28 day efficacy phase and a 120 day extended use phase. Efficacy of telmisartan was defined a priori as significant mean SBPreduction on day 14 compared to placebo and >20 mmHg SBP population mean reduction on day 28 compared to baseline. Pre-defined post inclusion removal criteria were adverse events, withdrawal of owner consent, owner non-compliance, TOD and SBP>200 mmHg. Missing SBP data were imputed in the database using the last observation carried forward method, if removal reasons had been TOD or SBP>200 mmHg. Data are presented as mean AE 1SD.