^aHypertension Center STRIDE-7, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, School of Medicine, Third Department of Medicine, Sotiria Hospital, Athens, Greece

^bNinewells Hospital & Medical School, University of Dundee, Scotland

^cThe Robertson Centre for Biostatistics, University of Glasgow, Glasgow

^dInstitute of Cardiovascular Science, University College London

^eDivision of Cardiovascular Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Biology and Health, University of Manchester

^fManchester Heart Centre and Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, UK

Correspondence to Professor George Stergiou, MD, FRCP, Hypertension Center STRIDE-7, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, School of Medicine, Third Department of Medicine, Sotiria Hospital, 152 Mesogion Avenue, Athens 11527, Greece. Tel: +30 2107763117; fax: +30 2107719981; e-mail: [email protected]