Natural Compound Curcumin as a Novel Therapy for Congestive Heart Failure: effects of Curcumin on Left Ventricular Diastolic Function in Hypertensive Heart Disease

INTERVENTION: Curcumin 2g/day p.o. Placebo 2g/day p.o. CONDITION: Hypertensive Heart Disease PRIMARY OUTCOME: Conventional Doppler indices of left ventricular diastolic function including; 1) Transmitral E/A ratio,; 2) Decerelation time,; 3) Pulmonary venous S/D ratio, ; etc; Tissue Doppler indices of left ventricular diastolic function including; 4) E/E' ratio,; etc SECONDARY OUTCOME: 1) Symptons; 2) Activity (Mets); 3) Blood pressure, pulse rate, and body mass index; 4) Blood analysis including BNP concentration and urinalysis; 5) Plasma Curcumin concentration; 6) Chest X‐p; 7) Electrocardiogram; 8) Echocardiography: left ventricular (LV) end‐diastolic dimension, LV end‐systolic demension, LV ejection fraction, left atrial demension, intraventricular septum thickness, LV posterior wall thickness, transmitral E and A wave velosity, pulmonary S and D wave velosity, and tissue Doppler early diastolic mitral annular velosity, etc INCLUSION CRITERIA: 1) Stable hypertensive patients: blood pressure =< 140/90 mmHg for a month or more 2) Hypertensive patients with left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy: past history of blood pressure >= 135/85 mmHg, and LV intraventricular septum thickness >= 11mm and/or LV posterior wall thickness >= 11mm, and LV ejection fraction >= 50% by echocardiograhy