FEATURES OF THE CLINICAL COURSE OF ARTERIAL HYPERTENSION IN PATIENTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS

Diabetes mellitus and hypertension are among the most common diseases worldwide, and their frequency increases with age. Elevated blood pressure (BP) values are common in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM2) and reflect, at least in part, the impact of underlying insulin resistance on the vasculature and kidneys. On the contrary, accumulating evidence suggests that carbohydrate metabolism disorders are more common in hypertensive patients, thus indicating that the pathogenic relationship between diabetes mellitus and hypertension is in fact bidirectional.

The development of hypertension in diabetics not only complicates the treatment strategy and increases healthcare costs, but also significantly increases the risk of macrovascular and microvascular complications. Although the reduction in blood pressure is followed by a significant reduction in cardiovascular and microvascular morbidity and mortality, a significant proportion of patients with diabetes mellitus exhibit poorly controlled hypertension. This observation may reflect not only delayed recognition of the presence of hypertension, clinical inertia, and poor adherence, but also uncertainty about treatment goals and pathogen correlation.