Mullen M, Jin XY, Child A, et al. - Researchers examined how irbesartan affects the rate of aortic dilatation in children and adults with Marfan syndrome. In this placebo-controlled, double-blind randomized trial performed at 22 centers in the UK, 192 individuals (aged 6–40 years) with clinically confirmed Marfan syndrome were recruited and were randomly allocated to receive irbesartan (n = 104) or placebo (n = 88). The irbesartan group vs the placebo group had the mean rate of aortic root dilatation of 0·53 mm per year (95% CI 0·39 to 0·67) vs 0·74 mm per year (0·60 to 0·89), respectively. Further, irbesartan led to a reduced rate of change in aortic Z score. This suggests the association of irbesartan use with a decrease in the rate of aortic dilatation in children and young adults with Marfan syndrome and with a decrease in the incidence of aortic complications.