DOUBLE-BLIND RANDOMIZED TRIAL OF 2 ANTIHY PERTENSIVE COMBINATIONS - ENALAPRIL-HYDROCHLOROTHIAZIDE VS ENALAPRIL-NIFEDIPINE IN 240 PATIENTS RESISTANT TO MONOTHERAPY

The combination of two antihypertensive drugs is recommended when mild to moderate hypertension is not controlled by sequential monotherapy. The aim of our study was to compare the efficacy and the safety of th e combination enalapril 20 mg - hydrochlorothiazide 12.5 mg to that of enalapril 20 mg - nifedipine SL 20 mg x 2. Two hundred and forty four hypertensive patients not controlled (DPB > 95 mmHg) by a single dose of enalapril 20 mg/24 h, received for 4 weeks, one of these two combi ned therapies in a randomized double-blind trial. The efficacy was of same amplitude in the two groups (DBP: -10.8 mmHg enalapril-hydrochlor othiazide vs - 10.3 mmHg enalapril-nifedipine). The side effects were less frequent in the enalapril-hydrochlorothiazide group (14 per cent vs 24 per cent, p=0.04).