Hydralazine was the most common drug for others to be evaluated against .
Diazoxide , given as 75 mg bolus injections , appears to be associated with maternal hypotension requiring treatment , and ketanserin is less effective than hydralazine at reducing blood pressure .
There is no other clear evidence that any one of the other antihypertensive agents is better than another for women with severe hypertension during pregnancy .
Exceptions are diazoxide and ketanserin , which are probably not good choices
BACKGROUND Very high blood pressure during pregnancy poses a serious threat to women and their babies .
The use of drugs to lower blood pressure will reduce this risk for the women , and possibly also for the baby .
OBJECTIVES The objective of this review was to compare different antihypertensive drugs used for treatment of severe hypertension during pregnancy .
Nifedipine in the Treatment of Severe Preeclampsia
We conducted a r and omized clinical trial in which patients with severe preeclampsia between 26 - 36 weeks of gestation received either nifedipine ( 10 - 30 mg sublingually , then 40 - 120 mg/day orally ; N=24 ) or hydralazine ( 6.25 - 12.5 mg intravenously , then 80 - 120 mg/day orally ; N=25 ) . Effective control of blood pressure was achieved with nifedipine in 95.8 % of subjects and with hydralazine in 68 % , a statistically significant difference ( P<.05 ) . Maternal side effects were minor in both groups . Acute fetal distress developed in one nifedipine subject and in 11 treated with hydralazine .  Mean prolongation of gestation was 15.5 ± 10 days with nifedipine and 9.5 ± 11 days with hydralazine , a difference that did not reach statistical significance ( P<.07 ) . Infants born to women treated with nifedipine were delivered at more advanced gestational ages ( 34.6 ± 2.3 versus 33.6 ± 2.4 weeks ; statistically not significant ) , weighed more ( 1826 ± 456 versus 1580 ± 499 g ; statistically not significant ) , and tended to have fewer , mainly minor , complications . The average number of days spent in the neonatal intensive care unit was significantly lower in the nifedipine group ( 15.1 versus 32.7 days ; P<.005 ) , leading to an average 31 % reduction in total ( maternal and neonatal ) hospitalization related charges for each nifedipine-treated pregnancy . We conclude that nifedipine is an effective , convenient , and low-cost treatment for patients with severe preeclampsia , and is not associated with undesirable side
Hydralazine was the most common drug for others to be evaluated against .
Diazoxide , given as 75 mg bolus injections , appears to be associated with maternal hypotension requiring treatment , and ketanserin is less effective than hydralazine at reducing blood pressure .
There is no other clear evidence that any one of the other antihypertensive agents is better than another for women with severe hypertension during pregnancy .
Exceptions are diazoxide and ketanserin , which are probably not good choices
BACKGROUND Very high blood pressure during pregnancy poses a serious threat to women and their babies .
The use of drugs to lower blood pressure will reduce this risk for the women , and possibly also for the baby .
OBJECTIVES The objective of this review was to compare different antihypertensive drugs used for treatment of severe hypertension during pregnancy .