[Treatment of essential mild-to-moderate arterial hypertension with once-daily penbutolol. Controlled clinical study vs atenolol].

The anti-hypertensive and tolerance of penbutolol, a non-selective beta-blocker of long duration and endowed with an ISA effect were compared with those of atenolol, a cardioselective beta-blocker without ISA effect, in two groups of 20 patients each suffering from slight-to-moderate essential primary hypertension selected on the basis of a clinico-experimental design of open randomised type. The two drugs presented a similar anti-hypertensive effect which attained its peak expression in the second week of treatment. As for side-effects, penbutolol during treatment presented better tolerance than atenolol. Further, both penbutolol administered once daily at a dose of 40 mg/die, and atenolol, administered once daily at a dose of 100 mg/die proved to possess satisfactory anti-hypertensive activity justifying its use in a single daily dose.