Comparative effects of captopril and isosorbide dinitrate on the arterial wall of hypertensive human brachial arteries.

Blood pressure, diameter, volume distensibility, and compliance of brachial artery were measured noninvasively in patients with sustained essential hypertension before and after Captopril in 11 patients and before and after isosorbide dinitrate (ISDN) in 11 other patients. Both drugs caused a similar significant decrease in mean arterial pressure (MAP) (p less than 0.001) and increase in arterial compliance (p less than 0.001), defined as the product of arterial volume by distensibility. ISDN increased arterial compliance through a dominant increase in arterial diameter (0.524 +/- 0.029 vs. 0.455 +/- 0.022 cm; p less than 0.001) and hence volume, whereas Captopril increased compliance through an increase in volume distensibility (0.20 +/- 0.02 vs. 0.12 +/- 0.02% change volume/mm Hg; p less than 0.001) with minimal changes in arterial diameter. The study provided evidence that of the two vasodilating drugs, ISDN and Captopril, only Captopril caused a predominant pharmacological relaxing effect on the wall of hypertensive human brachial arteries studied in situ.