Effects of antihypertensive therapy on hypertensive heart disease.

Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is a common sequela of long-standing essential hypertension. LVH cannot be considered, however, an adaptive process only serving to normalize wall stress but can be considered one that significantly increases the risk of sudden death, myocardial ischemia, congestive heart failure, and other cardiovascular diseases. Patients with LVH exhibit impaired ventricular filling, ventricular arrhythmias, and myocardial ischemia even in the absence of coronary artery disease. LVH can be prevented or reversed by a variety of antihypertensive agents including calcium channel blockers and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors. Calcium channel blockers, more than angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, suppress ectopic impulse generation, improve ventricular compliance, and alleviate myocardial ischemia while preserving or improving the contractile state. In contrast, ACE inhibitors can be particularly useful in patients with LVH and diminished ventricular contractility and in preventing chamber dilatation after myocardial infarct. These favorable cardiovascular effects of both calcium channel blockers and ACE inhibitors are a reason for optimism that carefully tailored therapy will ultimately diminish the well-documented risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality associated with LVH.