Please select the eligibility criteria that correspond to the clinical trial below.
Title: Efficacy of Aliskiren Compared to Ramipril in the Treatment of Moderate Systolic Hypertensive Patients
Brief Summary: This prospective multicenter, double blind study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of aliskiren versus ramipril in patients with moderate systolic essential hypertension.


Options:
A: Inclusion Criteria:

* Outpatients \> 18 years
* Male or female patients. Female patients must have been either post-menopausal for one year, surgically sterile, or using effective contraceptive methods
* Patients with essential hypertension, previously treated with an antihypertensive single-drug therapy, either uncontrolled or intolerant.
* BP thresholds at visit 1:

  * For patients previously treated and uncontrolled: 140≤ office SBP\<180 mmHg
  * For patients previously treated, controlled but intolerant: office SBP≥130 mmHg
* BP thresholds at visit 2 (for all patients):

  * 160≤office SBP\<180 mmHg AND
  * 155≤home SBP\<175 mmHg (3-day period of home blood pressure monitoring just before randomization)

Exclusion Criteria:

* Women of child-bearing potential not using any effective methods of contraception
* Severe hypertension (office BP ≥ 180/110 mmHg)
* Impossibility to stop abruptly previous antihypertensive treatments at visit 1
* Patients previously untreated or patients treated with two or three antihypertensive medications
* History or evidence of a secondary form of hypertension
* History of hypersensitivity to ACEi or renin inhibitors
* History of heart failure, stroke or coronary heart disease
* Serum potassium ≥ 5.2 mmol/l

Other protocol-defined inclusion/exclusion criteria may apply
B: Inclusion Criteria:

* Male or female outpatients ≥ 65 years old.
* Patients with essential hypertension with an msSBP ≥ 140 mmHg and \< 180 mmHg, and msDBP \< 110 mmHg at Visits 2 and 3. (Visit 201 was deleted by the Administrative Changes document.)
* Patients must have had a difference in msSBP of ≤ 20 mmHg between Visit 3 and the visit immediately prior to Visit 3.
* Patients who were eligible and able to participate in the study, and who consented to do so after the purpose and nature of the investigation had been explained to them (written informed consent).

Exclusion Criteria:

* History of renal artery stenosis.
* Known Keith-Wagener grade III or IV hypertensive retinopathy.
* History of hypertensive encephalopathy.
* Current diagnosis of heart failure (New York Heart Association Class III-IV).
* History of transient ischemic cerebral attack or cerebrovascular accident within 6 months.
* History of myocardial infarction, bypass surgery, or any percutaneous coronary intervention within 6 months.
* Current unstable angina pectoris. Patients on a stable dose of oral or topical nitrates or beta blockers for angina were acceptable.
* Concurrent potentially life threatening arrhythmia or symptomatic arrhythmia.
* Clinically significant valvular heart disease.
* Concurrent use of any antihypersensitive medications except a stable dose 3 months prior to visit 1 of alpha adrenergic blockers for benign prostatic hypertrophy (e.g., Flomax for BPH), beta blockers for angina, or beta blockers ophthalmic preparations.
C: Inclusion Criteria

Patients eligible for inclusion in this study had to fulfill all of the following criteria:

1. Patients ≥ 18 years of age, male or female.
2. Patients with a diagnosis of chronic heart failure (NYHA

   Class II - IV):
   1. LVEF ≤ 35% at Visit 1 (local measurement, within the past 6 months assessed by echocardiography, multiple uptake gated acquisition scan (MUGA), computerized tomography(CT) scan, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or ventricular angiography)
   2. Elevated BNP or NT-proBNP at Visit 1:

   BNP ≥ 150 pg/mL (or BNP ≥ 100 pg/mL and unplanned hospitalization for HF within the last 12 months prior to Visit 1) (according to local measurement). OR NT-proBNP ≥ 600 pg/mL (or NT-proBNP ≥ 400 pg/mL and unplanned hospitalization for HF within the last 12 months prior to Visit 1) (according to local measurement).
3. Patients had to be treated with an ACEI at a stable dose enalapril 10 mg daily at least or any other ACEI, e.g. ramipril, quinapril, lisinopril, fosinopril, perindopril, trandolapril; based on equivalent doses, for at least 4 weeks prior to Visit 1
4. Patients had to be treated with a beta-blocker, unless contraindicated or not tolerated, at a stable dose for at least 4 weeks prior to visit 1 (for patients not on target dose, according to local guidelines, or in absence of that medication, the reason should be documented).
5. Written informed consent to participate in the study and ability to comply with all requirements.

Exclusion Criteria

Patients with any of the following were to be excluded from participation in the study:

1. History of hypersensitivity to any of the study drugs including history or allergy to ACEIs as well as known or suspected contraindications to the study drugs or previous history of intolerance to high doses of ACEIs during up- titration process.
2. Patients treated concomitantly with both an ARB and an aldosterone antagonist in addition to study drug at Visit 1.
3. Current acute decompensated HF (defined as an acute exacerbation of a chronic heart failure status manifested by typical signs and symptoms of HF like dyspnea, fatigue etc., that may require IV therapy with diuretics, vasodilators and/or inotropic drugs).
4. Symptomatic hypotension and/or less than 95 mmHg systolic blood pressure (SBP) at Visit 1 and/or less than 90 mmHg SBP at Visit 4.
5. Acute coronary syndrome, stroke, transient ischemic attack, cardiac, carotid or major vascular surgery, percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or carotid angioplasty, within the past 3 months prior to Visit 1.
6. Coronary or carotid artery disease likely to require surgical or percutaneous intervention within the 6 months after Visit 1.
7. Right heart failure due to severe pulmonary disease.
8. Patients with Diabetes Mellitus.
D: Inclusion Criteria

* Patients with essential severe hypertension Exclusion Criteria
* History or evidence of a secondary form of hypertension
* History of hypertensive encephalopathy or cerebrovascular accident.
* Diabetic patients requiring insulin Other protocol-defined inclusion/exclusion criteria also apply

Answer: A