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To compare the antihypertensive effects of beta-blockers and diuretics on the blood pressure increase to stress, a randomized single-blind crossover study was performed in 27 patients with mild or moderate hypertension. At the initial examination and after two subsequent periods of therapy with 100 mg atenolol or with a combination of 50 mg hydrochlorothiazide and 5 mg amiloride hydrochloride, once a day, blood pressure and heart rate were measured at rest, during mental arithmetic, sustained handgrip and cycloergometric test. Both treatment significantly decreased supine and standing systolic and diastolic pressure at rest, during and immediately after mental stress and isometric exercise, with the reduction of diastolic pressure significantly greater after atenolol. During dynamic exercise, systolic and diastolic pressures were significantly decreased by diuretics at the lowest work-load only, whereas beta-blocker caused significant and greater blood pressure reductions throughout the exercise. The combination of two classes of drug normalized resting blood pressure in 8 of 9 subjects in which the monotherapy had failed to obtain values less than 140/90 mmHg and gave a better control of systolic and diastolic pressures throughout all the stress tests. It is concluded that atenolol is more effective than diuretics during stress, suggesting that beta-blocking drugs are the first choice treatment for mild to moderate hypertension and that when the antihypertensive effect of a single agent is insufficient, a combination of beta-blockers and diuretics is also effective during stress.

To investigate the usefulness of stress testing for the evaluation of hypertensive heart disease, 40 subjects, 28 men and 12 women (mean age 30.8 +/- 6.2 years), with mild or moderate hypertension, without ST segment or T wave abnormalities in their resting ECG, were examined. 13 patients (32.5%) showed exercise-induced ST segment depression. The heart rate at rest was significantly higher in the patients with a positive response; 6 of the 7 subjects with electrocardiographic signs of left ventricular hypertrophy (summed SV1 + maximum R V5/V6 voltage of 45 mm or more) had a positive exercise electrocardiographic test. There were no significant differences between positive and negative cases in age, sex, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, or the double product (heart rate X systolic pressure) at rest or during exercise. After resting blood pressure values had been significantly decreased by giving methyldopa with or without diuretics for at least 6 months, there were a regression of left ventricular hypertrophy in the resting ECG and an impressive reduction in the prevalence of exercise-positive responses (to 17.5%). In the 7 patients with positive exercise electrocardiographic tests even after antihypertensive treatment, no significant reduction in blood pressure values during exercise was obtained.

In order to compare the efficacy of beta-blocking, diuretics and ACE-inhibiting monotherapy in controlling the blood pressure increase to stress, a study was conducted on 30 subjects (10 treated with atenolol, 10 with hydrochlorothiazide/amiloride combination, 10 with enalapril) with mild or moderate essential hypertension whose resting blood pressures were normalised by therapy. In the 3 groups of subjects blood pressure values at rest, during mental stress, static and dynamic exercise did not significantly differ before antihypertensive therapy. Atenolol and enalapril significantly reduced systolic and diastolic pressure below pretreatment values throughout and immediately after each test, differing from diuretic therapy which did not show any significant reduction in diastolic rises at the peak of hand-grip or in both systolic and diastolic pressures at the highest work-loads during dynamic exercise. In the recovery period of the exercise cycle test diuretics also produced a later normalisation of diastolic pressure. In conclusion, beta-blockers and ACE-inhibitors seem to be more effective than diuretics in the control of the blood pressure response to stress in hypertensive patients, suggesting that these drugs are the first choice treatment of mild to moderate hypertension.