Use of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system blockade in controversial chronic kidney disease populations.

Abstract

Renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system blockers have shown to be effective in controlling blood pressure and proteinuria, slowing the progression to end stage renal disease and reducing cardiovascular risk, so they are the mainstream treatment of hypertension in chronic kidney disease. Their beneficial effects have been proven in multiple randomized clinical trials on different study populations, but there has recently been some controversial data on its use in some subgroups of patients, especially those with advanced chronic kidney disease. In some other populations such as patients with non-proteinuric nephropathies or the elderly, who can be more susceptible to its adverse events, their benefits have also been questioned. The aim of the present review is to collect available published data on the effect of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system blockers in some controversial populations and provide perspective on future research areas in this field.