Efficacy Safety and Tolerability of Valsartan and Hydrochlorothiazide Compared to Valsartan and Amlodipine in Stage 2 Hypertension DOI: 10.53685/jshmdc.v3i1.94 Abdul Karim 1 , Sarwat Iqbal 2 , Shabbir Ali Bhatti 3 , Mujeeb-ur-Rehman Abid 4 , Naveed Iqbal 5 , Asad Ejaz 6 Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Shalamar Medical & Dental College, Lahore 1 Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine, Shalamar Medical & Dental College, Lahore 2 Professor, Department of Pharmacology, Shalamar Medical & Dental College, Lahore 3 Professor, Department of Medicine, Shalamar Medical & Dental College, Lahore 4 PGR, Department of Medicine, Shalamar Medical & Dental College, Lahore 5 PGR, Department of Medicine, Shalamar Medical & Dental College, Lahore 6 ABSTRACT Background: Hypertension is a growing medical and public health issue. United States and European treatment guidelines have been issued to attain smooth control of hypertension in various categories of patients. It is the need of the time to unveil the safe combination therapies in various populations. Objectives: (i) To determine the efficacy of valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide versus valsartan and amlodipine (ii) To determine the safety and tolerability of both combinations. Materials & Methods: This experimental study was conducted at Shalamar Hospital Lahore. 126 patients of stage 2 hypertension were recruited from the medical outdoor of Shalamar Hospital Lahore after getting informed consent. In group A, 63 patients were given valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide. In group B, 63 patients were given valsartan and amlodipine. Blood pressure (BP) of both study groups was recorded on day zero, 2 nd ,4 th , and 8 th weeks and the readings were entered on a Proforma. The efficacy of drug combinations was accessed in both groups by recording the change in mean systolic blood pressure (MSBP) and mean diastolic blood pressure (MDBP). Safety and tolerability of the drug combinations was assessed in terms of side effects and laboratory findings. Results: In group A, there was 39±7mmzHg and 18±1mmHg decrease in MSBP and MDBP respectively from base line BP. In group B, there was 26.7±4mmHg and 14±2 mmHg decrease in MSBP and MDBP respectively from base line BP. Both combinations were safe and no significant difference in the efficacy of both combinations was observed after 8-week of treatment. Conclusion: Both combinations are effective for control of BP, but valsartan and hydrochlorothiazide combination (group A) appears to have better tolerability and greater effect in decreasing BP as compared to combination of valsartan and amlodipine (group B), although this difference is not statistically significant. Key Words: Amlodipine, antihypertensive drugs, efficacy, valsartan, hydrochlorothiazide How to cite this article: Karim A, Iqbal S, Ali SB, Rehman MA, Iqbal N, Ejaz A. Efficacy Safety and Tolerability of Valsartan and Hydrochlorothiazide Compared to Valsartan and Amlodipine in Stage 2 Hypertension. J Shalamar Med Dent Coll. Jan- June 2022, Vol 3 Issue 1: 120-127. doi:10.53685/jshmdc.v3i1.94 …………………………………………………………………….................... This article is published in JSHMDC under the term of the Creative Commons Attribution-Non Commercial CC BY-NC 4.0 International License. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. ORIGINAL ARTICLE Corresponding Author: Dr. Abdul Karim Professor Department of Pharmacology Shalamar Medical & Dental College, Lahore Email address: drabdulkarim43@gmail.com Received 21.02.2022, Revised 13.04.2022, Accepted 23.05.2022 120 J Shalamar Med Dent Coll Jan-June 2022 Vol 3 Issue 1