[Calcium antagonists: a potent vasodilatory principle and alternative basic antihypertensive therapy].

The calcium antagonists nicardipin and verapamil were used to demonstrate enhanced calcium influx dependent vasoconstriction in the forearm circulation of patients with essential hypertension (n = 11) as compared to normotensive subjects (n = 10) while non-specific vasodilatory responses were comparable. Chronic treatment with verapamil (427 mg/day) and nifedipine (56 mg/day) in 104 patients with essential hypertension demonstrated a comparable fall in blood pressure with both drugs. Antihypertensive responses correlated directly with pretreatment blood pressure (p less than 0.001) and the patient's age (p less than 0.01), and indirectly with plasma renin activity (p less than 0.01). Therefore, calcium antagonists may be used as an alternative to diuretics as first line drugs in elderly and low renin patients.