Antihypertensive Efficacy and Tolerability of a Fixed Combination of Metoprolol and Felodipine in Comparison with the Individual Substances in Monotherapy

Summary: In this double-blind, randomized, parallel-group study, the aim was to compare the efficacy and tolerability of a new fixed combination of felodipine and metoprolol with the individual components in monotherapy. After a placebo period of 4 weeks, 159 patients with mild to moderate essential hypertension were randomized to extended-release formulations of either felodipine plus metoprolol 10 + 100 mg (FM), felodipine 10 mg (F), or metoprolol 100 mg (M) once daily if supine diastolic blood pressure >95 mm Hg. After 12 weeks of active treatment, the reductions in supine blood pressure (24 h after dosing) were 20/14, 13/10, and 11/8 mm Hg for FM, F, and M, respectively. The difference in change was 7/4 mm Hg (p = 0.004/p = 0.006) and 8/5 mm Hg (p = 0.0002/p < 0.0001) for the fixed combination and F or M, respectively. Blood pressure control (diastolic blood pressure <90 mm Hg after 12 weeks) was significantly better for the combination than for F and M, i.e., 71%, 49% (p = 0.008), and 34% (p = 0.004), respectively. Adverse experiences were those to be expected from previous studies with felodipine and metoprolol and did not differ in frequency between groups. It can be concluded that a fixed combination of metoprolol and felodipine has a clinically relevant and significantly better blood pressure reduction 24 h postdose than the individual substances in monotherapy, without decreased tolerability.