Efficacy and safety of Tian-teng decoction in treating hypertensive emergency

Purpose: To investigate the efficacy and safety of the traditional Chinese herbal formula (Tian-Teng Decoction) for the treatment of patients with hypertensive emergency. Methods: 120 patients with hypertensive emergency who were treated in Hebei Provincial Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine between July 2021 and December 2022 were equally and randomly divided into study and control groups. Patients in the study group received orally Tian-Teng decoction (300 mL divided into two portions administered morning and evening for 2 weeks), while control group received only conventional treatment (sublingual captopril at 12.5 mg twice daily for 2 weeks). Symptoms improvement, changes in blood pressure, onset time, laboratory indicators, clinical manifestations, and adverse reactions were recorded. Results: The study group exhibited significant decrease in blood pressure 30 min after medication (p < 0.05). Systolic and diastolic blood pressures were significantly lower in the study group compared to control group at 1, 2, and 3 h after medication. Nitric oxide (NO) was significantly higher, while angiotensin II (Ang Ⅱ), insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), traditional Chinese medicine syndrome scores, and the incidence of adverse reactions were significantly lower in study group compared to control group (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Tian-Teng Decoction demonstrates good efficacy and safety in the treatment of hypertensive emergency. Future studies that incorporate a larger sample size and prolonged observation period to validate the findings of this study are recommended.