The increase in erythrocyte deformability in patients treated with nicardipine or nimodipine.

A study was made of a total of 50 patients, 36 females and 14 males, with an average age of 51.3 +/- 11.71 years (range 19-71). The group consisted of outpatients who came to the neurology clinic suffering from vascular headache or other symptomatic complaint of vascular type. In all cases, the existence of an organic neurological pathology had been considered and rejected. All patients who were smokers or suffering from hypertension were excluded, as well as those who had abnormal lipid or glucose values or who were on drug treatment for other reasons. The basal erythrocyte deformability value was determined and the patients divided into two random homogeneous groups. One of the groups was treated with nimodipine (90 mg/d) and the other with nicardipine (60 mg/d) for a period of two months. After this treatment period a further determination of the erythrocyte deformability was carried out. In the group treated with nimodipine, the erythrocyte deformability varied from 45.5 +/- 7.4 mcl/s to 50.35 +/- 12.02 mcl/s (p = 0.07123). In the group treated with nicardipine, these values varied from 45.96 +/- 7.35 mcl/s to 56.21 +/- 12.72 mcl/s (p = 0.00079). It was concluded that in both groups of patients, after two months treatment with these calcium antagonists, there was an improvement in erythrocyte deformability and, therefore, in blood fluidity, although only the nicardipine-treated group reached statistically significant levels.