Standardised tomato extract as an alternative to acetylsalicylic acid in patients with primary hypertension and high cardiovascular risk – a randomised, controlled trial

INTRODUCTION: Cardiovascular (CV) diseases remain a leading global cause of death. It has been proven that the use of acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) in secondary prevention reduces the CV risk, while the benefits of ASA in primary prevention have recently been debated. The aim of the study was to compare the antiplatelet effect of standardised tomato extract (STE) and ASA in hypertensive patients with high CV risk. MATERIAL AND METHODS: The study involved high-risk patients with arterial hypertension (AH) randomly assigned to one of two groups: group 1 included 33 patients receiving ASA and group 2 included 32 patients receiving STE. The platelet aggregation was determined using the VerifyNow analyser. RESULTS: After 4 weeks of ASA treatment in group 1, a statistically significant reduction in aspirin reaction units (ARU) was observed (p < 0.001). However, the obese subgroup using ASA (n = 18) did not reveal a significant decrease in ARU (p > 0.05). After 4 weeks of STE treatment in the obese subgroup (n = 14), significant declines in ARU by 8.6% (95% CI: –19.5 to –1.7%; p < 0.05) and in P2Y12 reaction units (PRU) by 7.5% (95% CI: –17.6 to 1.8%; p < 0.05) were observed. CONCLUSIONS: The antiplatelet effect of STE in hypertensive patients may be weight dependent. The group with AH and obesity might have potentially benefitted from STE treatment.