Conditions: Endothelial Dysfunction
Keywords: Endothelial Dysfunction Endothelial Function Tekturna Endothelial Peripheral Arterial Tomography (EndoPAT) Progenitor Cells renin inhibition endothelial progenitor cells early atherosclerosis
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: PARALLEL
Enrollment: 22
Healthy volunteers: no

Brief summary:
We will study the hypothesis that long-term Tekturna treatment will improve endothelial function and the production and function of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) in patients with early atherosclerosis. Specifically, long-term Tekturna treatment will increase the Reactive Hyperemia Peripheral Arterial Tonometry indexes and increase the numbers and the function of circulating endothelial progenitor cells, compared to placebo, in association with a reduction in inflammation and oxidative stress.

Detailed description:
Aliskiren is a direct renin-inhibitor and may have beneficial effects on the vascular endothelium, similar to other antihypertensive therapies targeting the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS). The current study was designed to test the hypothesis that aliskiren improves endothelial function and increases the number of endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) in normotensive patients with early atherosclerosis.

Arms:
arm 1: 150 mg Aliskiren once daily for a period of 4 months. arm 2: 1 pill per day by mouth for 4 months.

Interventions: intervention 1: Aliskiren intervention 2: Placebo
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: 150 mg Aliskiren once daily for a period of 4 months intervention 2: 1 pill per day by mouth for 4 months

Protocol document: