[The treatment of hypertension in the elderly using a beta-blocker: acebutolol (author's transl)]

The tolerance and antihypertensive action of acebutolol, as a sole drug and in combination with a diuretic, were studied in a population of 34 female subjects aged over 65 years, with a mean of 81 years, suffering from well tolerated essential hypertension. The study was carried out in the form of double blind permutations, each subject receiving successively in an order determined by random selection each of three therapeutic phases: acebutolol, acebutolol in combination with a diuretic and a placebo. The results showed that in the elderly acebutolol had a moderate diuretic action which was remarkably potentialised by diuretics. The tolerance of this beta-blocker was excellent: no cases of cardiac failure, and no disturbances in atrioventricular conduction developed during the phases with active treatment.