Effects of long use of a beta-blocker, carteolol, on exercise hemodynamics in hypertensives.

The symptom limited maximal exercise was performed by a supine bicycle ergometer before and 12 weeks after oral carteolol therapy in 10 patients with essential hypertension of WHO Stage 1 and 2. At rest, arterial blood pressure (BP) and venous pressure (VP) significantly declined after therapy, while heart rate (HR), cardiac index (CI), stroke index (SI) and systemic vascular resistance (SVR) were not significantly changed. The maximal exercise work of post-therapy was similar to that of pre-therapy in 9 patients and increased in one. When compared with the pre-therapy values at each work load of exercise, carteolol caused significant decreases in systolic BP, mean BP, HR and CI, and a significant increase in SVR, while SI and VP were not significantly changed. Plasma levels of renin activity, aldosterone, and catecholamines were not altered by carteolol throughout the study at rest and with exercise. It may be concluded that the inhibition of HR increase by carteolol results in a reduced cardiac output during moderate and severe exercise and then suppresses the elevation of BP, so that carteolol makes it possible to achieve more exercise with less cardiac work.