Etozolin monotherapy and combination with verapamil in essential hypertension

A total of 1337 patients with mild to moderate essential hypertension were included in an open, multicentre trial to assess the response rate to the diuretic etozolin (200 mg once a day) and to verify whether the addition of the calcium antagonist verapamil (120 mg twice a day) in non-responders may have a favourable effect. Etozolin lowered diastolic blood pressure to below 95 mmHg in 67.8% of patients after 4 weeks of treatment and in 62.4% of patients after 12 weeks. The patients who failed to respond to etozolin were given verapamil (120 mg twice a day), and 72.8% of these patients showed a good response to the combined treatment. Normalization of blood pressure was achieved in 83.6% of the total patients. The incidence of side effects was 14.3%; withdrawal due to side effects was reported in 2.5% of patients. Abnormalities on the ECG were recorded in 5.5% of patients. No consistent metabolic or electrolyte change was observed. In conclusion, etozolin given at a dose of 200 mg once a day seems to be an effective and safe antihypertensive agent. Its antihypertensive effect remains unaltered for 12 weeks at least. The combination with verapamil may be effective in those who do not respond to etozolin alone.