A novel molecule of the angiotensin II receptor blocker class: Focus on olmesartan medoxomil

Pharmacological selective inhibition of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system is an effective and safe treatment for essential hypertension. Inhibition of this system not only produces consistent reductions in blood pressure, related to vasodilatation and other relevant mechanisms, but can also reverse the pathological structural remodelling of the heart and vasculature, which may contribute to improvements in vascular morbidity and mortality. Thus, the inclusion of angiotensin II receptor antagonists among the major antihypertensive classes meets the clinical needs of this condition and represents an important therapeutic approach. Beyond the treatment of hypertension, there is mounting evidence that angiotensin II receptor antagonists may exert powerful renoprotective actions, reduce new-onset diabetes mellitus and improve outcomes in heart failure. Furthermore, this class of drugs is unique among antihypertensive agents in terms of tolerability profile. Several different molecules with the property of selectively inhibiting the binding of angiotensin II to the angiotensin II type 1 (AT1) receptors have been introduced into pharmacotherapy over time. All have been extensively tested in hypertension and other disease conditions. Most recently, a new angiotensin II receptor blocker compound, olmesartan medoxomil, has been introduced to clinical use for the therapy of hypertension. This paper provides a synthetic overview of olmesartan medoxomil, which has been demonstrated to be effective in reducing blood pressure levels, with an early onset of the antihypertensive efficacy within the first 2 weeks of treatment. The rapid onset of efficacy may partially explain the excellent responder rates observed with this new drug. © 2005 Adis Data Information BV. All rights reserved.