Evaluation of a New Antihypertensive Agent
Prazosin Hydrochloride (Minipress)
- Mary Ellen Kosman, PhD
Abstract
Prazosin hydrochloride is an orally administered vasodilator that recently became available for the treatment of hypertension. It causes less tachycardia than hydralazine but may produce orthostatic hypotension, particularly after the initial dose. The role of prazosin in therapy is limited because of the risk of a first-dose syncopal reaction, and it appears to be indicated primarily in patients who cannot tolerate hydralazine hydrochloride or sympathetic depressant drugs. Like other antihypertensive agents, prazosin should be given with a diuretic.
(JAMA 238:157-159, 1977)
Footnotes
-
Scientific data on prazosin hydrochloride were supplied by Pfizer Laboratories Division, Pfizer Inc, New York.
-
Reprint requests to Department of Drugs, American Medical Association, 535 N Dearborn, Chicago, IL 60610 (Dr Kosman).
