[The effect on left ventricular mass of treatment with amlodipine and diet therapy in obese patients with arterial hypertension]

Increased parietal stress, in hypertensive obese patients, produces a left ventricular hypertrophy. In this study we demonstrated that the association of amlodipine with hypocaloric diet can decrease the parietal stress. MATERIALS AND METHODS. From February to July 1993 32 hypertensive obese patients (17 males, 15 females) were treated with amlodipine 10 mg/day for six months. Sixteen patients were treated with amlodipine 10 mg/day (Group A) and 16 patients were treated with amlodipine 10 mg/day and hypocaloric diet (Group B). All patients included had a Body Mass Index > 30 and diastolic blood pressure > 100 mmHg. The patients were studied with 2D guided M-mode echocardiogram before treatment and after 6 months. RESULTS. In Group A the septal thickness, the posterior wall thickness and the left ventricular mass decreased significatively (p < 0.05). In the Group B also the left ventricular diastolic diameter and the left atrial diameter decreased. CONCLUSION. The association of a hypocaloric diet with amlodipine therapy, in hypertensive obese patients, improves the effect of the drug on ventricular hypertrophy.