Cardiovascular disease is the main cause of mortality in industrialized countries due both to its high incidence of occurrence and the seriousness of its clinical outcomes.

Hypertension is a chronic condition which can lead to other cardiovascular disorders if not treated. It is an asymptomatic disease that affects around 600 million individuals worldwide and is proven to be directly associated with an increased risk of stroke related illness and coronary disease. The risk of becoming hypertensive is increasing in the industrialized world on account of factors that appear to be linked to its onset such as insufficient physical exercise, smoking and unhealthy eating habits. The results of clinical studies have shown that blood pressure control reduces the risk of mortality due to stroke and other cardiovascular events. Despite the proven advantages of a correct antihypertensive treatment, it is estimated that half of the hypertensive population is never diagnosed, that half of those diagnosed are not treated, and that half of the patients treated is not adequately controlled.

Antihypertensive treatments represent one of the major segments of the worldwide pharmaceutical market and is served by a number of drug classes which illustrates the difficulty that there has been in finding a single drug that effectively lowers blood pressure, without producing side effects that may be more troublesome than the symptoms of hypertension itself. Recordati's efforts in this area are driven by the need for drugs with better therapeutic profiles. This commitment led to the discovery of lercanidipine, a latest generation calcium channel blocker. Its long duration of action and excellent tolerability profile, which have been shown by a number of clinical studies published in leading international scientific journals, have determined its success.

The international guidelines for the treatment of hypertension establish new aggressive targets for blood pressure control in order to minimize the risk of severe cardiovascular events. Most hypertensive patients, especially those with other associated risk factors, now require multiple therapies using more than one drug to keep their blood pressure at desired levels. Fixed combinations of more than one antihypertensive agent will therefore play a significant and increasing role in the future hypertension market. The advantages of fixed combinations as opposed to the administration of separate treatments are significant. The combined dosages of the drugs are those broadly used by the physician and their efficacy and tolerability have been proven in clinical trials. The reduction of the number of pills a patient must take, especially in the elderly, increases patient compliance – which is extremely important in chronic treatments aimed at reducing and preventing cardiovascular risk.