Tolerance to nitrendipine in patients with arterial hypertension accompanying chronic renal failure.

To test the tolerance to nitrendipine in arterial hypertension secondary to chronic renal parenchymatous disease, a group of 10 patients so diagnosed and adequately controlled with a diuretic alone or with a beta-blocker were switched to nitrendipine at a dose to insure similarly adequate control of blood pressure. Patients were followed for 1 year at monthly intervals during which blood pressure measurement and the determination of a biochemical profile were performed. During the follow-up, nitrendipine adequately controlled blood pressure and a significant fall was observed in hematocrit (p less than 0.05) and serum uric acid (p less than 0.01) values. Meanwhile, the glomerular filtration rate, determined by the creatinine clearance, did not exhibit significant changes nor did the 24-h urinary excretion of proteins. The tolerance of the drug was adequate, with two patients presenting minimal ankle edema. These results seem to indicate that nitrendipine can be safely used in patients with arterial hypertension secondary to chronic renal parenchymatous disease.