News - Hypertension Week of April 6, 2003/ Vol. 2 No. 14

Study: Verapamil Effective in Hypertensive Patients With Heart Disease

Calcium channel blockers may provide an effective alternative to beta blockers in the treatment of patients with both hypertension and coronary artery disease, according to a study reported in the April 2 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

As reported in the April 2 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, the study compared the calcium channel blocker verapamil with the beta blocker atenolol. Beta blockers are currently considered the gold standard in treating this group of patients.

After evaluating more than 22,000 high-risk patients with cardiovascular disease, researchers found verapamil to be equal to atenolol in reducing mortality, heart attacks or strokes. Verapamil patients were also less likely to develop type-2 diabetes than those taking the beta blockers.

Some of those treated with verapamil and atenolol were also treated with the ACE inhibitor trandolapril and/or the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide. The majority of the patients (70 percent) required more than one medication to reach target blood pressure goals, showing that a single medication was generally insufficient to control blood pressure.

In a questionnaire, more patients in the verapamil arm responded that they felt good or excellent at 24 months. Reported adverse events were similar in frequency between treatment strategies. Patients in the verapamil group were 13 percent less likely to develop diabetes during follow-up versus patients in the beta-blocker group.

Other sources: Abbott Laboratories