Patients taking common blood pressure drugs such as amlodipine face a 33 per cent higher risk of developing severe kidney disease, researchers have warned.
The findings focus on dihydropyridine calcium-channel blockers, a widely used class of blood pressure medication prescribed to millions of people to reduce the likelihood of heart attacks and strokes.
Experts presenting the research said the results raise important questions regarding whether these medications remain the best treatment choice for individuals who are already at elevated risk of renal failure.
In Britain, high blood pressure affects an estimated 16 million people, with dihydropyridine calcium-channel blockers forming a mainstay of routine hypertension management.
Amlodipine is the most frequently prescribed drug in this class, accounting for approximately 41 million prescriptions annually in the UK, alongside related medications including felodipine, lacidipine, lercanidipine hydrochloride, nicardipine hydrochloride, nifedipine and nimodipine.
Calcium-channel blockers work by relaxing and widening blood vessel walls, enabling blood to flow more freely and reducing overall arterial pressure throughout the circulatory system.
Five-year study of diabetes patients
The investigation focused specifically on patients with type 2 diabetes, a metabolic condition in which elevated blood glucose levels force the kidneys to work harder, gradually degrading the organs' delicate filtering units.
Israeli researchers tracked more than 31,000 adults with type 2 diabetes over a five-year period to evaluate their long-term kidney health outcomes.
Roughly 40 per cent of the participants in the study were taking dihydropyridine calcium-channel blockers, and all patients were also receiving other standard medications designed to protect against kidney damage.
The findings were presented at this year's European Renal Association Congress in Glasgow, Scotland's largest city and a major center for international medical research gatherings.
Scientists revealed that patients taking calcium-channel blockers experienced a 33 per cent higher risk of serious kidney complications compared to those on alternative blood pressure treatments.
These complications included a drop of more than 40 per cent in kidney function, which measures how effectively the kidneys filter waste products and excess fluid from the bloodstream.
Risks of end-stage kidney failure
Patients receiving dihydropyridine calcium-channel blockers were also significantly more likely to develop end-stage kidney disease, severe organ failure requiring life-sustaining dialysis treatment or an organ transplant.
Dialysis serves as an artificial filtration process to remove dangerous toxins from the blood when natural kidney function collapses entirely.
Kidney failure accounts for approximately 45,000 deaths each year across the UK, with roughly 20 people developing terminal kidney failure in Britain every single day.
Dr Timna Agur, a senior nephrologist at Rabin Medical Center in Israel and lead author of the study, highlighted the clinical significance of the team's observations.
Dr Agur said: "Our findings raise important questions about whether these medications are always the best option for patients already receiving modern kidney-protective therapies."
Dr Agur added: "Given how commonly these medications are prescribed, any increase in kidney risk could have important implications for large numbers of patients."
Potential biological mechanisms
Researchers believe dihydropyridine calcium-channel blockers may adversely interfere with the regulation of blood flow directly inside the kidneys' internal structures.
The scientists suggested that the drugs may relax renal blood vessels to such a degree that an excessive volume of fluid is pushed into the filtering system, potentially accelerating structural damage over time.
However, the research team stressed that the study design could not definitively prove a direct causal link between the medications and increased kidney complications, noting that the strong statistical association warrants urgent further clinical investigation.
Calls for earlier NHS diagnostic testing
The publication of the study coincides with growing calls from medical professionals for the NHS to implement routine urine screening to detect early stages of diabetes-related kidney disease.
Kidney disease currently affects more than 7 million people across Britain, yet experts estimate that between 30 and 50 per cent of all cases remain undiagnosed by medical practitioners.
Data from the health charity Kidney Care UK revealed that 65 per cent of individuals with diabetes and high blood pressure who subsequently developed kidney disease were never warned of their heightened risk.
Furthermore, nearly 40 per cent of diabetic patients fail to receive annual urine tests capable of spotting early renal damage, missing vital opportunities for preventative interventions that can slow or stop disease progression.
Earlier this year, Alison Railton, director of policy at the charity Kidney Research UK, emphasized the urgent need for systemic diagnostic improvements.
Alison Railton said: "Governments need to prioritise resourcing health services to diagnose at-risk patients, such as those with heart disease, high blood pressure or diabetes earlier, and deliver urgent, preventative care, or millions of patients and economies worldwide will suffer the consequences."
