NCT05438446CompletedPhase 2
Effect of Renal Denervation on Stress, Hypertension and Anxiety Management
Effect of Renal Denervation on Stress, Hypertension and Anxiety Management (ERSHAM Study) in Patients With Uncontrolled Hypertension
Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Last updated 30 Jul 2026
Brief summary (registry, in English)
The ERSHAM (Effect of Renal Denervation on Stress, Hypertension and Anxiety Management) is a single-center, interventional, open-label, randomized controlled trial that will be conducted at the Hypertension Unit "ESH Excellence Center'', 1st Cardiology Department of the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens at the General Hospital of Athens "Hippokration", which is the reference center for uncontrolled hypertension and for sympathetic renal denervation (RDN) in our region. Sixty (60) consecutive patients aged 30-70 years with uncontrolled arterial hypertension either under anti-hypertensive treatment with 1 drug \[at least 50% of maximum manufacturer's recommended dosage of an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI)/ angiotensin II receptor blocker (ARB) or a calcium channel blocker (CCB)\] or naïve from antihypertensive treatment and HADS (Hospital anxiety and depression scale) anxiety subscore ≥ 8 will be enrolled (Figure 1). Patients will be randomized in a 1: 1 ratio to endovascular ultrasound RDN (Paradise renal denervation system, ReCor, CA, USA) (RDN) (n= 30) or to control group (n= 30). Baseline clinical data, cardiovascular risk factors, medical history as well as medication will be recorded in each group. After the randomization, patients who will be randomized to RDN group will undergo a computed tomography angiography (CTA) or magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) of the renal arteries in order to assess whether the renal arteries' anatomy is suitable for RDN by using the Paradise system. The images of the CTA/MRA will be uploaded onto BIOCLINICA web-based portal in order to optimize device use (RDN catheter) and location of ablations. Patients will not change their antihypertensive medications during the 3 months follow -up. After that, their management will be evaluated based on the current 2018 ESC/ESH guidelines. Possible RDN-related adverse events will be recorded during the follow-up period. Blood pressure (BP) will be measured by office BP measurements as well as 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. Anxiety and depression will be evaluated by the self-assessment hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS). Stress management will be evaluated via Perceived Stress Scale-14 (PSS-14). To assess the quality of life (QoL) the health status questionnaire (SF-12) will be used. The social readjustment rating scale will be used in order to evaluate the probability of developing a stress-related disorder during the follow-up period. Finally, a questionnaire for personal stress due to high blood pressure will be applied at the baseline and at the end of the follow-up period. Patients will be followed-up for 6 months after the randomization. A total of three (3) follow-up visits for each patient will be scheduled during the 6-month follow-up period of the study \[1st (adverse events review), 3rd, and 6th month after the randomization). If there is a failure in reaching the office BP \<140/90mmHg at the 3rd and 6th month, the antihypertensive therapy will be reevaluated according to the current ESH/ESC Guidelines. All patients will give written informed consent and the study will be organized according to ethical considerations, as described in the Declaration of Helsinki for human medical studies, and the protocol will be approved by the institutional medical ethics committee.
- Status (registry)
- Completed
- Phase (registry)
- Phase 2
- Study type
- Interventional
- Enrollment
- 60 (actual)
- First submitted
- 24 Jun 2022
- Start date
- 18 Oct 2021
- Primary completion date
- 28 Feb 2026
- Lead sponsor
- Hippocration General Hospital
- Diseases
- High blood pressure
- NCT number
- NCT05438446
What you commit to
- Study type: Interventional · Phase 2
- Participants enrolled: 60
- From 18 Oct 2021 to the primary completion date, 28 Feb 2026
- 1 site in 1 country
- Visits and tests: ask the trial team, the registry does not list them
Built from the registry fields of ClinicalTrials.gov. It describes the study, not your situation.
Who cannot take part
Copied verbatim from ClinicalTrials.gov and grouped by topic. Only the trial team decides who can take part.
Prior treatment
- Patients with secondary arterial hypertension or under treatment with b-blockers, diuretics, mineralocorticoid receptors antagonists (MRAs) or a centrally acting alpha-adrenergic agonist.
- Patients under treatment with antidepressants and/or anxiolytic drugs.
- Patients with evidence of any of the following criteria on either renal artery side:
- Main renal artery diameter \< 3.0 mm or \> 8 mm
- Main renal treatable artery length \< 20 mm
- Presence of renal artery stenosis of any origin ≥ 30%
- Accessory arteries with diameter ≥ 2mm \<3.0 mm
- Calcification in renal arteries at location where energy is to be delivered
- A single functioning kidney
- Prior renal denervation procedure
- Presence of abnormal kidney tumors
- Renal artery with aneurysm
- Pre-existing renal stent or history of renal artery angioplasty
- Pre-existing aortic stent or history of aortic aneurysm
- Fibromuscular disease of the renal arteries
- Iliac/femoral artery stenosis precluding insertion of the Paradise Catheter
- Patients with a history of acute coronary syndrome or stroke during the previous six months or Scheduled coronary interventional therapy during the next six months.
Other illness
- Patients with permanent atrial fibrillation, chronic heart failure and NYHA functional status II-IV, Cancer under therapy (radiotherapy, chemotherapy, immunotherapy)
Lab values
- Patients with a glomerular filtration rate (eGFR)\] \<45 ml / min / 1.73 m2 calculated using the CKD-EPI formula15.
Other
- Patients with life expectancy \<1 year (at the time of inclusion).
- Pregnant women or women who are planning to become pregnant.
- Patients who do not provide written consent to participate in the study
Who the study is looking for
- Consecutive patients aged 30-70 years with arterial hypertension diagnosed at least 3 months prior to the inclusion.
- Office blood pressure (OBP) \>140/90mmHg and \<160/100 mmHg
- Either no baseline hypertension treatment or hypertension treatment with one drug. The antihypertensive treatment will include a renin-angiotensin system (RAS) blocker \[either an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) or an angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB)\] or a calcium channel blocker (CCB).
- Unchanged antihypertensive therapy during the prior 8 weeks.
- Patients with baseline anxiety subscore ≥ 8 according to the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS)
Age in the registry: 30 years to 70 years · Sex: All · Does not accept healthy volunteers
Sites (1)
Sites in registry order. Pick your city on the disease page to sort them by distance.
| Site | City | Country | Site status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hippokration Hospital of Athens Coordinator of this site? Confirm its status | Athens | Greece | Unknown status |
This page is information, not medical advice. Discuss any trial with your doctor.