This Article  • References  • Full text PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in JAMA  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

C. Venkata S. Ram, MD; Karl Engelman, MD

JAMA. 1979;242(19):2104-2105.

Abstract
Clonidine therapy was discontinued abruptly in seven patients. Blood pressure was recorded every hour or two hours throughout the study. Clonidine therapy was reinstituted 48 hours after its discontinuation in all except two patients, in whom it was reinstituted at 36 hours. During the withdrawal phase, blood pressure tended to return rapidly to nontreatment levels, but there was no "overshoot" in blood pressure. Apprehension, insomnia, palpitations, and sweating were experienced by two patients. These symptoms were relieved promptly by reinstituting clonidine therapy. In this prospective study, no blood pressure overshoot was noted with abrupt discontinuation of clonidine.

(JAMA 242:2104-2105, 1979)

Author Affiliations
From the Hypertension and Clinical Pharmacology Section, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Dr Ram is now at the University of Texas Health Science Center, Dallas.

Footnotes
Read before the 18th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Kansas City, Mo, March 21, 1979.

Reprint requests to Department of Internal Medicine, University of Texas Health Science Center, 5323 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75235 (Dr Ram).

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

Safe Discontinuation of Antihypertensive Therapy
Kirk and Johnson
Arch Fam Med 1995;4:266-270.
ABSTRACT  

Hypertensive Crises
Ram and Hyman
J Intensive Care Med 1987;2:151-162.
ABSTRACT