Why the most popular first-line antihypertensive might not be the best
Data on nearly five million patients suggests older drugs are more effective
Patients with hypertension prescribed diuretics rather than ACE inhibitors first-line have a lower risk of myocardial infarction, stroke and hospitalisation for heart failure, a landmark review has found.
The analysis of data from 4.9 million people initiated on antihypertensive monotherapy also showed that non-dihydropyridine calcium channel blockers were significantly inferior to all other classes of blood pressure drugs.
