title: Amlodipine: a randomized, blinded clinical trial in 9 cats with systemic hypertension.
abstract: The efficacy of amlodipine (AML) was tested in hypertensive cats in a placebo-controlled, randomized, blinded clinical trial. Five cats were randomized to receive 0.625 mg AML once daily and 4 cats to receive placebo (PLA) once daily. The average systolic blood pressure (SBP) recorded by the Doppler method on day 0 was 212 +/- 21 mm Hg in the AML group and 216 +/- 32 mm Hg in the PLA group. On day 7, the cats receiving AML had a significantly lower average daily SBP (160 +/- 30 mm Hg) but SBP in the PLA group was unchanged (207 +/- 31 mm Hg). On day 7, all cats receiving PLA and one cat receiving AML were crossed over to the other group because of inadequate response. Blood pressure did not decrease adequately in 3 cats by day 14 (7 days of PLA and 7 days AML) and the treatment code was broken. Each of these cats was subsequently administered 1.25 mg AML daily. Cats requiring 1.25 mg AML once daily (6.1 kg +/- 0.7 kg) weighed significantly more than cats that responded to 0.625 mg AML once daily (4.1 +/- 0.7 kg). The average daily SBP recorded in the 6 cats that completed the study was significantly lower after 16 weeks of treatment (152 +/- 14 mm Hg) compared to day 0 (221 +/- 24 mm Hg). Three cats were euthanized before completion of the study. All 3 cats were responders to AML on day 7. SBPs measured 24 hours after AML administration were similar to the average daily SBP, suggesting that AML effectively controlled SBP for a 24-hour period. AML was shown to be an effective once-daily antihypertensive agent when administered to cats at a dosage of 0.18 +/- 0.03 mg/kg sid.
authors.affiliation: Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville 32610-0126, USA. snyder@mail.vetmed.ufl.edu
authors.forename: P S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Snyder
mesh_terms: D017311:Amlodipine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000818:Animals; D000959:Antihypertensive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D001835:Body Weight; D002371:Cat Diseases; D002415:Cats; D004311:Double-Blind Method; D006973:Hypertension / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000662:veterinary*; D010919:Placebos; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D000959:Antihypertensive Agents; D010919:Placebos; D017311:Amlodipine