Renal Denervation, From the Outside In

AI-generated image · VitalsDaily

Key Takeaway

In a small first-in-human trial of 10 patients with resistant hypertension, a new system that delivers radiofrequency energy from outside the kidney arteries lowered median 24-hour systolic pressure by 25.0 mmHg at 3 months while patients took fewer medications. It also treated small, unusually branching arteries that standard catheter approaches usually can’t reach, with no major complications. The results are early and uncontrolled, but they make a strong case for a larger, rigorous trial.

Six Pills a Day, and Still Above 140

Picture a 52-year-old man who does everything right. He takes his pills every morning, and there are a lot of them: a diuretic, a calcium channel blocker, an ACE inhibitor, a beta-blocker, and two more added by a cardiologist who is running out of ideas. His cuff still reads in the 160s. Every visit ends with the same question: what else is left?

Physicians call this resistant hypertension, meaning blood pressure that stays high despite 3 or more medications. It affects roughly 8% to 18% of…