Due to significant heterogeneity across trials , a significant effect in diastolic blood pressure ( DBP ) , mean arterial pressure ( MAP ) , and heart rate ( HR ) could not be found .
The SBP effects were achieved with 0.5 mg/day or greater .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS Reserpine is effective in reducing SBP roughly to the same degree as other first-line antihypertensive drugs .
BACKGROUND Many antihypertensive agents exist today for the treatment of primary hypertension ( systolic blood pressure > /=140 mmHg and /or diastolic blood pressure > /=90 mmHg ) .
R and omised controlled trials have been carried out to investigate the evidence for these agents .
There is , for example , strong RCT evidence that thiazides reduce mortality and morbidity .
Reserpine has been used as a second-line therapy in some of those trials .
However , the dose-related blood pressure reduction with this agent is not known .
OBJECTIVES To investigate the dose-related effect of reserpine on blood pressure , heart rate and withdrawals due to adverse events .
Anti-hypertensive adrenergic-blocking agents: effects on sodium balance, the renin-angiotensin system and haemodynamics.
1 . The changes in plasma volume , haemodynamic variables , plasma renin activity and plasma aldosterone were studied in forty-one hypertensive patients after administration of adrenergic-blocking agents .  Four drugs were used : alpha-methyldopa ( fourteen patients ) , guanethidine ( ten patients ) , clonidine ( nine patients ) and reserpine ( eight patients ) . Drugs were administered orally during 7 days ' hospitalization on a normal sodium diet ( 110 mmol/day ) . 2 . The four drugs had similar effects : a significant decrease in blood pressure , a significant increase in plasma volume and no change in stroke volume . 3 . With alpha-methyldopa and guanethidine , heart rate , plasma renin activity and plasma aldosterone were unchanged . 4 . With reserpine and clonidine , heart rate and plasma renin activity were significantly decreased , whereas plasma aldosterone did not change significantly . 5 . This study suggests that the decrease in plasma renin activity was related to the lowering of the heart rate rather than to sodium retention and that adrenergic-blocking agents can impair the normal relationship between stroke index and plasma volume , between plasma volume and plasma renin activity , and between plasma renin activity and plasma aldosterone
Due to significant heterogeneity across trials , a significant effect in diastolic blood pressure ( DBP ) , mean arterial pressure ( MAP ) , and heart rate ( HR ) could not be found .
The SBP effects were achieved with 0.5 mg/day or greater .
AUTHORS ' CONCLUSIONS Reserpine is effective in reducing SBP roughly to the same degree as other first-line antihypertensive drugs .
BACKGROUND Many antihypertensive agents exist today for the treatment of primary hypertension ( systolic blood pressure > /=140 mmHg and /or diastolic blood pressure > /=90 mmHg ) .
R and omised controlled trials have been carried out to investigate the evidence for these agents .
There is , for example , strong RCT evidence that thiazides reduce mortality and morbidity .
Reserpine has been used as a second-line therapy in some of those trials .
However , the dose-related blood pressure reduction with this agent is not known .
OBJECTIVES To investigate the dose-related effect of reserpine on blood pressure , heart rate and withdrawals due to adverse events .