Attenuation by diltiazem of arterial baroreflex sensitivity in man

The effect of oral diltiazem 120 mg, on the responses to baroreflex activation and deactivation by phenylephrine and nitroglycerin, respectively, were investigated in normotensive subjects, with simultaneous measurement of plasma catecholamine levels. Diltiazem significantly reduced the tachycardia induced by bolus injections of nitroglycerin and abolished the concomitant increase in plasma noradrenaline. It also significantly decreased the bradycardiac response to phenylephrine infusion. Diltiazem reduced, although not significantly so, the bradycardia induced by boluses of phenylephrine. The overall reduction in baroreflex sensitivity, which might contribute to the limited tachycardiac effect of diltiazem in man, is consistent with the drug-induced attenuation of the sympathetic and also of the parasympathetic components of the baroreceptor reflex.