Beta blockers, hypertension, and blacks--is the answer really in?

It has been reported that beta blockers are not effective antihypertensives in black populations. A review of the literature revealed that, for the most part, studies drawing this conclusion were of small sample size, lacked controls, and did not represent the demographics of the US black population. The largest US study (Veterans Administration Cooperative Study) showed propranolol to be effective in at least one half of the black patients, with white patients responding better, but diuretics were more effective in both races. More recent studies show beta blockers with alpha-antagonistic properties to be effective in black hypertensives. The question is raised whether enough data have been analyzed to suggest these drugs are ineffective for black hypertensives.