There is important evidence in favor of the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors for treating hypertensive urgencies , compared with calcium channel blockers , considering the better effectiveness and the lower frequency of adverse effects ( like headache and flushing )
CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE Hypertensive urgencies are defined as severe elevations in blood pressure without evidence of acute or progressive target-organ damage .
The need for treatment is considered urgent but allows for slow control using oral or sublingual drugs .
If the increase in blood pressure is not associated with risk to life or acute target-organ damage , blood pressure control must be implemented slowly over 24 hours .
For hypertensive urgencies , it is not known which class of antihypertensive drug provides the best results and there is controversy regarding when to use antihypertensive drugs and which ones to use in these situations .
The aim of this review was to assess the effectiveness and safety of oral drugs for hypertensive urgencies .
Treatment of Hypertensive Urgencies with Oral Nifedipine, Nicardipine, and Captopril
Sixty-five patients with unclomplicated hypertenive urgencies were treated in the emergency and cardiology departments with 20 mg nifedipine , 20 mg nicardipine , or 25 mg captopril in a r and omized study . The study population consisted of 65 patients ranging in age from forty-one to seventy-one .  Blood pressure and heart rate were assessed for six hours after intake of the antihyper tensive agents . Within sixty minutes nifedipine reduced blood pressure by an average of 74.7 mmHg for the systolic and 35.4 mmHg for the diastolic . Average heart rate increased significantly by 11.6 beats/min at within thirty minutes . Nicardipine and captopril produced equivalent falls in systolic ( -81.6 and -79.4 mmHg ) and diastolic ( -37.3 and -33 mmHg ) blood pressure respectively , but did not increase heart rate significantly . The antihypertensive effect of each drug was maintained until six hours after medication . In conclusion , nifedipine , nicardipine , and captopril show similar efficacy in the treatment of hypertensive urgencies . The authors believe that these drugs can be used as first-line therapy in the treatment of hypertensive urgencies safely and effectively
There is important evidence in favor of the use of angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitors for treating hypertensive urgencies , compared with calcium channel blockers , considering the better effectiveness and the lower frequency of adverse effects ( like headache and flushing )
CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE Hypertensive urgencies are defined as severe elevations in blood pressure without evidence of acute or progressive target-organ damage .
The need for treatment is considered urgent but allows for slow control using oral or sublingual drugs .
If the increase in blood pressure is not associated with risk to life or acute target-organ damage , blood pressure control must be implemented slowly over 24 hours .
For hypertensive urgencies , it is not known which class of antihypertensive drug provides the best results and there is controversy regarding when to use antihypertensive drugs and which ones to use in these situations .
The aim of this review was to assess the effectiveness and safety of oral drugs for hypertensive urgencies .