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Effects of diltiazem hydrochloride on cardiovascular response, platelet aggregation and coagulating activity during
Insights
Diltiazem hydrochloride effectively reduces exercise-induced heart rate and blood pressure increases in patients with hypertension. This medication improves cardiovascular response to exercise without impacting blood coagulability.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Systemic hypertension (Stage 1-2) involves hyperresponsiveness to exercise.
- Cardiovascular and hemostatic responses to exercise require careful management in hypertensive patients.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effects of diltiazem hydrochloride on exercise-induced cardiovascular responses.
- To assess the impact of diltiazem on plasma renin activity, platelet function, and blood coagulability in hypertensive patients.
Main Methods:
- Multistage treadmill exercise test.
- Evaluation of heart rate, blood pressure, and pressure-rate product.
- Measurement of plasma renin activity, platelet aggregation, and coagulation parameters (PT, aPTT, fibrinogen, AT-III).
Main Results:
- Diltiazem (180 mg/day for 4 weeks) significantly reduced heart rate, blood pressure, and pressure-rate product at rest, peak exercise, and recovery.
- A trend towards increased plasma renin activity was observed.
- Platelet function and key blood coagulability markers remained unchanged.
Conclusions:
- Diltiazem hydrochloride ameliorates exercise-induced cardiovascular hyperresponsiveness in hypertensive patients.
- The drug does not significantly affect blood coagulability or platelet function.
Abstract:
The effects of diltiazem hydrochloride on exercise-induced changes in cardiovascular response, plasma renin activity, platelet function and blood coagulability were evaluated with multistage treadmill exercise in 20 patients who had systemic hypertension of stage 1 to 2 (World Health Organization classification). Heart rates, blood pressure, and pressure-rate product at rest, at peak exercise and in the recovery period were significantly reduced after 4 weeks of diltiazem administration, 180 mg/day. Plasma renin activity tended to increase after the medication. However, platelet adenosine diphosphate-induced aggregation sensitivity, prothrombin time, activated partial thromboplastin time, plasma fibrinogen concentration and antithrombin III activity did not change significantly. It is concluded that diltiazem could ameliorate the hyperresponsiveness of heart rate and BP to exercise in hypertensive patients without affecting blood coagulability.