[Effects of the long-term treatment with losartan and captopril and of the abrupt cessation on circadian blood pressure profile].

The influence of a long-term treatment with losartan (50-100 mg o.d.) and captopril (25-50 mg b.i.d.) followed by the abrupt therapy cessation was studied in an open randomized placebo-controlled parallel group trial. The study was performed on a group of 22 essential (soft to moderate) hypertensive male patients, which entered the trial when a mean daytime diastolic blood pressure was BP > or = 90 Torr. The antihypertensive effect of losartan was more pronounced and homogeneous than the effect of an equivalent dose of captopril. The group-average trough/peak ratios upon the losartan treatment were 61.5 and 61.3% for the systolic and diastolic BP (against 21.2 and 26.9% for captopril), respectively. At the same time, the smoothness index values of the patients treated with losartan and captopril showed no significant difference. Neither treatment with any of the two drugs nor the therapy cessation affected the circadian BP profile or the BP variability. The abrupt termination of the drug administration did not cause a withdrawal syndrome: on the contrary, a significant effect of the captopril and losartan treatment (statistically reliable against the placebo control) persisted for at least four days after the therapy cessation. Taking into account poor homogeneity of the antihypertensive effect of captopril in patients with a stable moderate hypertension treated b.i.d., the drug administration is recommended according to the t.i.d. schedule. In this group of patients, losartan and captopril are probably more expediently administered in combination with other hypertensive drugs.