Study selection and eligibility criteria
Papers were initially screened by title and abstract. Studies were
eligible for inclusion if they were a randomized-controlled trial (RCT)
performed in hypertensive human subjects ≥18 years old, examining
antihypertensive effects of either a thiazide, thiazide-like, loop,
mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist (MRA) or potassium-sparing
diuretic with a duration of at least one week. Studies investigating
novel diuretics not licensed for clinical use were excluded as were
studies in which subjects had pulmonary arterial hypertension or heart
failure. All studies were required to have examined PA with results
available before and during diuretic treatment or, in the case of
placebo-controlled trials, during treatment with placebo. Studies were
eligible if diuretic therapy was added to either no previous therapy or
to stable background treatment. The search was limited to the English
language only and review articles were disregarded. Titles and abstracts
were screened by one author (RJM), and the same author reviewed the
full-text articles.