Study Finds Seniors with COVID-19 Taking Hypertension Medication at Lower Risk of Hospitalization, Clinical Trial to Follow I...
May 19 2020 - 10:00AM
Business Wire
A UnitedHealth Group and Yale School of
Medicine study clears the way for clinical trials that could
improve care and treatment for a vulnerable population
A study completed by UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) with the
Yale School of Medicine found that older COVID-19 patients with
hypertension taking angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors
had a lower risk of COVID-19 hospitalization. A pragmatic clinical
trial will be a critical next step.
The study, which was recently submitted for peer-reviewed
publication, analyzed retrospective data from about 10,000 patients
testing positive for SARS-CoV-2 who were enrolled in Medicare
Advantage or commercially insured plans, and had a prescription for
one or more anti-hypertensive medications. The use of ACE
inhibitors was associated with an almost 40% lower risk of COVID-19
hospitalization for Medicare Advantage patients. A younger,
commercially insured group did not have the same result. Use of the
medication was not found to reduce mortality risk in individuals
once hospitalized with COVID-19.
“While not yet actionable, these findings provide an impetus to
test whether this common, inexpensive class of drugs can mitigate
the impact of the virus,” said Dr. Harlan Krumholz, the Harold H.
Hines, Jr. professor of medicine at Yale and the director of the
Yale New Haven Hospital Center for Outcomes Research.
The findings of this analysis
clear a path for a pragmatic, large-scale clinical research trial
to examine the potential role of ACE inhibitors in preventing the
severe consequences of COVID-19. The large-scale research trial led
by UnitedHealth Group and Yale School of Medicine will adopt an
innovative, modern approach as one of the first virtual COVID-19
clinical trials to be launched at scale with a suite of digital
tools.
“The results from this study offer critical new insights that
can help accelerate clinical trials on ACEs to inform appropriate
hypertension treatments for seniors during the COVID-19 pandemic,”
said Dr. Deneen Vojta, executive vice president, Global Research
& Development for UnitedHealth Group. “We are hopeful this
information will help clinicians, health care researchers and
industry leaders work together to validate these findings and
possibly reduce the risk of hospitalization for COVID-19.”
To learn more about this
forthcoming research trial and how to participate, visit
www.unitedinresearch.com.
About UnitedHealth Group
UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) is a diversified health care
company dedicated to helping people live healthier lives and
helping to make the health system work better for everyone.
UnitedHealth Group offers a broad spectrum of products and services
through two distinct platforms: UnitedHealthcare, which provides
health care coverage and benefits services; and Optum, which
provides information and technology-enabled health services. For
more information, visit UnitedHealth Group at
www.unitedhealthgroup.com or follow @UnitedHealthGrp on
Twitter.
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Eric Hausman 952-936-3963 Eric.Hausman@uhg.com
UnitedHealth (NYSE:UNH)
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