Context

Hypertension continues to represent a major threat for people's health because it is associated with raised cardiovascular (CV) morbidity and mortality.1 As a consequence of the threatening role of hypertension, antihypertensive therapy has become one of the cornerstones of any CV prevention strategy. Solid evidence has accumulated over the last two decades of the beneficial role of renin-angiotensin system (RAS) blocking agents, including ACE inhibitors, angiotensin receptor blockers (ARBs) and, recently, direct renin inhibitors (DRIs), for not only lowering blood pressure, but also in reducing hypertension-related burden of disease.

Beside the differences …