Effect of diltiazem on left ventricular mass and diastolic filling in mild to moderate hypertension.

It is still uncertain whether antihypertensive therapy with calcium antagonists in general, and diltiazem in particular, can reduce left ventricular (LV) mass index and improve LV diastolic filling in hypertension. Therefore, 24 patients with mild to moderate hypertension (diastolic blood pressure 95 to 114 mm Hg before therapy) were randomly assigned to receive either a sustained-release preparation of diltiazem (n = 13) or placebo (n = 11) for 16 weeks in a double-blind, parallel-group protocol. M-mode and pulsed Doppler echocardiograms were performed at baseline and at the end of monotherapy. Echocardiograms were read blindly by 2 independent observers. The patients who received placebo exhibited no change in blood pressure, cardiac dimensions or LV function. Diltiazem significantly reduced both systolic pressure (151 +/- 14 to 139 +/- 12 mm Hg) and diastolic pressure (101 +/- 4 to 90 +/- 7 mm Hg, both p less than 0.05). Posterior wall and septal wall thicknesses decreased, but the changes were not statistically significant. End-diastolic dimension was reduced by diltiazem from 53 +/- 5 to 51 +/- 5 mm (p less than 0.05). LV mass index decreased significantly with diltiazem by 10%, from 125 +/- 21 to 113 +/- 23 g/m2 (p less than 0.05). The LV wall thickness to radius ratio remained unchanged during both diltiazem and placebo treatments. Changes in LV mass index and blood pressure did not correlate, suggesting that this response is influenced by factors other than pressure reduction alone.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)