ABSTRACT
In 101 hypertensive patients, the effects of a combination of propranolol and bendrofluazide were compared with those of each drug alone. After an introductory period with a placebo, the patients received, in a double-blind randomized trial, propranolol 80 mg twice a day, bendrofluazide 2.5 mg twice a day, or both drugs together twice daily. The combination produced significantly greater reductions in lying, standing, and post-exercise systolic and diastolic blood pressure than either drug separately. Side-effects were minimal and the combination was well accepted by patients.
Subject(s)
Bendroflumethiazide/therapeutic use , Hypertension/drug therapy , Propranolol/therapeutic use , Adult , Aged , Bendroflumethiazide/administration & dosage , Double-Blind Method , Drug Combinations , Humans , Middle Aged , Placebos , Propranolol/administration & dosageABSTRACT
Two ambulances from the existing fleet in Brighton and one in Hove are equipped with portable defibrillator-oscilloscope units. Selected attendants have been trained not only to defibrillate patients but also to perform endotracheal intubation and administer intravenous atropine and lignocaine for carefully defined indications. In the two years up to December 1975 the ambulances responded to 2253 calls which were considered possible emergencies. Retrospective analysis showed that half of these had been for patients with myocardial infarction, coronary insufficiency, or angina. The ambulances took a median time of five minutes to reach a patient. Attempts at resuscitation were made in 207 patients with circulatory arrest, of whom 160 had ventricular fibrillation. Coordinated rhythm was restored at least transiently in 66 patients, and 27 of them survived to leave hospital. Sixteen of the survivors had been in ventricular fibrillation before the arrival of the ambulance. The delay before admission to hospital was reduced: over 50% of patients carried in the ambulances were admitted within two hours of the onset of major symptoms. No extra ambulance staff have been employed for the scheme. The increased load on hospital services has been limited by encouraging a rational admission policy and also by early discharge.
