Beta blocker therapy in African American patients with heart failure.

Data from a number of clinical trials of beta blocker therapy in heart failure, although limited in the size of African American patients included, suggest that they achieve a similar benefit as Caucasians. African Americans were usually at higher risk when enrolled in all of these studies with a higher incidence of hypertension and diabetes mellitus. The only exception is the Beta Blocker Evaluation of Survival Trial (BEST) that studied the efficacy of Bucindolol in heart failure. In that study there appeared to be a unique differential effect in African Americans compared to Caucasians which may have been in part related to the severity of the disease.