REVIEW ER 'S CONCLUSIONS It remains unclear whether antihypertensive drug therapy for mild-moderate hypertension during pregnancy is worthwhile
BACKGROUND Mild-moderate hypertension during pregnancy is common .
Antihypertensive drugs are often used in the belief that lowering blood pressure will prevent progression to more severe disease , and thereby improve outcome .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of antihypertensive drug treatments for women with mild to moderate hypertension during pregnancy .
Blood pressure patterns in pregnant patients on oral ketanserin.
BACKGROUND Ketanserin , a selective serotonin-2 receptor antagonist , decreases systolic blood pressure ( SBP ) and diastolic blood pressure ( DBP ) in non-pregnant patients with hypertension , but not in normotensive subjects . Its effect on longitudinal blood pressure ( BP ) patterns in pregnant women has not been documented . OBJECTIVES To assess how ketanserin , given orally , influences maternal BP during pregnancy . DESIGN A double-blind r and omised controlled trial where patients with DBP > or = 80 mmHg between 12 and 20 weeks ' gestation received either ketanserin or placebo . SETTING Tygerberg Hospital , a tertiary referral unit in the Western Cape . SUBJECTS One hundred and two patients who received their study drug for at least 140 days during pregnancy . Patients requiring additional antihypertensive medication were excluded from the analysis . OUTCOME MEASURES Changes in SBP and DBP in relation to gestational age and days since entering the study . RESULTS The mean DBP over the total period was significantly lower in the ketanserin group ( 77 + /- 8.7 mmHg v. 80.8 + /- 9.1 mmHg ) . The decline in DBP was 9.2 mmHg in the ketanserin group and 5.3 mmHg in the placebo group . These differences were detected from within 7 days of therapy and persisted for most of the pregnancy . The mean SBP did not differ at any stage , although the mean fall in SBP was significantly greater in the ketanserin group ( 8.6 + /- 16.7 v. 4.1 + /- 17.1 mmHg ) . CONCLUSIONS Ketanserin decreased DBP during pregnancy significantly more than placebo
REVIEW ER 'S CONCLUSIONS It remains unclear whether antihypertensive drug therapy for mild-moderate hypertension during pregnancy is worthwhile
BACKGROUND Mild-moderate hypertension during pregnancy is common .
Antihypertensive drugs are often used in the belief that lowering blood pressure will prevent progression to more severe disease , and thereby improve outcome .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of antihypertensive drug treatments for women with mild to moderate hypertension during pregnancy .