Pathophysiology of Antihypertensive Therapy with Diuretics

Antihypertensive treatment with diuretics: antediluvian

Thiazide diuretics were among the first drugs able to lower blood pressure with minimal side-effects in a large proportion of the hypertensive population. In addition they appeared to potentiate nearly all other hypotensive drugs. Hence they were advised as the mainstay of antihypertensive treatment and were used in all large-scale trials [1] which showed beneficial effect of blood pressure low...

Beta-blockers and diuretics in antihypertensive therapy: the debate continues.

BUMC PROCEEDINGS 2000;13:379–380 Editor’s note: In the April 2000 issue, Dr. Franz Messerli published an article entitled “Antihypertensive therapy: beta-blockers and diuretics— why do physicians not always follow guidelines?” BUMC Proceedings published commentaries to this article by Dr. Marvin Moser of Yale University School of Medicine and Dr. Norman Kaplan of The University of Texas Southwe...

Antihypertensive Therapy: Beta-Blockers and Diuretics - What is the Evidence?

Mechanism of antihypertensive effect of thiazide diuretics.

Hemodynamic studies were carried out before and during 8 weeks of treatment with hydrochlorothiazide 50 mg. twice daily in 11 hypertensive patients. Forty-eight hours after beginning treatment there was a significant reduction in blood pressure, cardiac output, plasma volume, and extracellular fluid volume (thiocyanate space) while total peripheral resistance increased. After 6 and 8 weeks of t...

Normalization of lipid metabolism after withdrawal from antihypertensive long-term therapy with beta blockers and diuretics.

Blood pressure and serum lipoprotein concentrations were assessed in 40 men with essential hypertension at the end of a long-term, controlled intervention study (HAPPHY) after 5.2 +/- 1.4 years of treatment with hydrochlorothiazide (n = 23) or atenolol (n = 17) and after a wash-out period. After withdrawal from antihypertensive medication, the blood pressures of patients treated with diuretics ...