The relationship of resting and exercise blood pressure in subjects with essential hypertension before and after drug treatment with propranolol.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the relationship between clinic resting blood pressure (BP) and exercise BP in subjects with established essential hypertension during placebo and propranolol-treated phases.


METHODS
Prospective, placebo-controlled, cross-over trial.


METHODS
University-affiliated medical center.


METHODS
A convenience sample of 38 patients with essential hypertension, 34 men and four women, who ranged in age from 22 to 62 years (mean = 44 years, SD = 10.7). Subjects were diagnosed with mild to moderate diastolic or mixed systolic/diastolic essential hypertension at least 1 year before study entry. They had no clinical evidence of secondary hypertension, diabetes, heart, liver, pulmonary, or renal disease.


METHODS
Resting and exercise BP.


METHODS
Antihypertensive medication was tapered off and subjects were free of all prescription drug treatment for 2 weeks. They received placebo for an additional 2 weeks. Subjects then received treatment with propranolol at a dose necessary to control resting blood pressure for 4 to 6 weeks. At the end of both the untreated and treated phases, subjects were given a graded maximal exercise test on a bicycle ergometer.


RESULTS
Propranolol effectively reduced mean resting and maximal exercise BP. The nonsignificant correlation between clinic resting and maximal exercise systolic BP was low in both phases. The correlation between clinic resting and maximal exercise diastolic BP was only moderate, but statistically significant (untreated, r = 0.43; p < 0.01; treated, r = 0.53; p < 0.001). For systolic BP or diastolic BP, there were no significant relationships between percent drop in BP because of propranolol at rest or maximal exercise. Clinic resting BP was not a valid predictor of maximal exercise BP. Degree of control of clinic resting BP was not a valid predictor of control observed at maximal exercise.


CONCLUSIONS
Resting BP should not be used as a predictor of BP during maximal exercise in the untreated condition or with treatment with propranolol.
Potempa
K M
KM
University of Illinois, Chicago 60612.
Folta
A
A
Braun
L T
LT
Szidon
J P
JP
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology*; D005080:Exercise Test / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D011433:Propranolol / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012146:Rest / Q000502:physiology*
D011433:Propranolol