Hypertension, Vascular Disease, and Prevention Mark A. Creager Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA Dr. Creager described 3 abstracts of the 421 that had been accepted in this category for presentation at this year's meeting. He was particularly excited about the first study, which he described as "an excellent example of taking medical research from the laboratory to the bedside." For his review, Dr. Creager selected 3 abstracts of the 421 that had been accepted in this category for presentation at this year's meeting. Dr. Julian J.P. Halcox presented "Coronary Microvascular Endothelial Dysfunction is Associated with an Increased Risk of Acute Cardiovascular Events During Long-Term Follow-Up." This study was designed to investigate the relation between coronary vascular endothelial function and the occurrence of acute unpredictable cardiovascular events among patients with and without coronary artery disease. The findings involved measuring the change in coronary vascular resistance in response to acetylcholine and sodium nitroprusside in 300 patients undergoing catheterization. Patients were followed for a mean of 46 months. The results showed that coronary microvascular endothelial dysfunction is an independent predictor of acute cardiovascular events among patients with and without coronary artery disease. The response to the endothelial agonist provides both functional and prognostic information that complements results of coronary angiography and risk factor assessment. Dr. David A. Kass presented a study in which ALT-711, a new drug that catalytically breaks advanced glycation end-product cross-links, was tested in 89 older patients with decreased large artery distensibility or decreased compliance. Treatment with this drug decreased pulse pressure by 5.6 mm Hg compared with 0.5 mm Hg in the placebo group, and it increased large artery distensibility and compliance. This may be an important potential therapeutic advance for the growing population of elderly people with isolated systolic hypertension and high pulse pressures. Dr. Paul Ridker presented the results of the Pravastatin Inflammation/CRP Evaluation (PRINCE) trial. In this study, patients were prospectively randomized to receive either pravastatin 40 mg per day for 24 weeks in primary prevention and secondary prevention cohorts or placebo. The results demonstrated that pravastatin reduces plasma levels of C-reactive protein, an indicator of inflammation, independently of the effect of pravastatin on lowering serum lipid levels. Additional studies will be needed to determine if there is a correlation between this ability to reduce levels of an indicator of inflammation and the favorable clinical outcomes associated with statin therapy. Reporter: Andre Weinberger, MD Copyright 2000-2013 by HESCO International, Ltd. All rights reserved.