Long-term effects of bisoprolol on blood pressure, serum lipids, and HDL-cholesterol in patients with essential hypertension.

The objective of the study was to evaluate the effect of continuous therapy with bisoprolol on blood pressure, serum lipids, and HDL-cholesterol over a period of 10 months following an initial 3-month titration and short-term treatment period. The results of the short-term study have been presented in a separate report. Forty-two patients entered into this long-term study, and 41 of them completed the 10-month treatment period. The mean supine blood pressure was 134/85 mm Hg at the end of the short-term study and was maintained at 137/85 mm Hg after 10 months on bisoprolol. At the end of the study, all patients but one had a supine diastolic blood pressure of less than or equal to 90 mm Hg with a dose of 2.5-40 mg bisoprolol. Three of the patients required concomitant use of hydrochlorothiazide to keep this pressure level. A small but statistically significant increase in serum triglycerides was observed from the start of the titration period to the end of the long-term study. Within each study, the changes were not significant. No significant changes were observed for total cholesterol, or for low density lipoprotein (LDL)- or high density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol. The side effects were rare and the usual for beta-blockers.