Candesartan cilexetil: in children and adolescents aged 1 to <17 years with hypertension.

Candesartan cilexetil is the orally administered prodrug of candesartan, an angiotensin II subtype 1 receptor antagonist. The pharmacokinetics (area under the plasma concentration-time curve and maximum plasma concentration) of candesartan do not appear to be affected by age, sex, or weight, with a similar exposure observed in children aged 1 to <6 years or >6 years and adults. Therapy with candesartan cilexetil 0.05, 0.20, and 0.40 mg/kg/day for 4 weeks was effective in the treatment of hypertension in children aged 1 to <6 years, inducing significant dose-dependent reductions from baseline in sitting SBP (SSBP) [primary endpoint] and sitting DBP (SDBP) in the double-blind phase of a randomized, parallel-group, multinational, dose-ranging clinical study. The criteria for antihypertensive response (SBP and DBP values that were less than the 95th percentile) were met by 28-66% of patients. The beneficial antihypertensive effects of candesartan cilexetil therapy were sustained for up to 160 weeks. No significant difference from zero in the slope of the placebo-adjusted change in SSBP (primary endpoint) and SDBP was observed across the three candesartan cilexetil treatment groups (candesartan cilexetil 2, 8, or 16 mg/day in patients weighing <50 kg and candesartan cilexetil 4, 16, or 32 mg/day in patients weighing ≥50 kg) during the double-blind phase of a randomized, double-blind, parallel-group, placebo-controlled, multinational, dose-ranging study in children and adolescents aged 6 to <17 years. Nonetheless, candesartan cilexetil demonstrated significantly greater changes from baseline to the end of the double-blind phase than placebo in SSBP and SDBP, with a significantly higher proportion of patients receiving candesartan cilexetil meeting the criteria for antihypertensive response than those receiving placebo. Antihypertensive response rates were sustained for 52 weeks. Candesartan cilexetil therapy for up to 160 weeks was generally well tolerated in clinical studies in children and adolescents aged 1 to <17 years with hypertension.