RESUMO
In a randomized study 30 patients (age 59 +/- 7) with angiographically confirmed coronary artery disease were treated with either gallopamil (15 patients) or diltiazem (15 patients). After a 48-h-run-in period of treatment with nitrates the gallopamil group was treated with 3 X 60 mg/day, and the diltiazem group was treated with 3 X 50 mg diltiazem/day. As criteria for the efficacy of therapy the anginal frequency, the nitroglycerin consumption, and exercise tolerance were monitored. During exercise the blood pressure in the 50-watt-level, the product of blood pressure, and pulse rate at 50 watts and at the maximal workload level, the ischemic index was calculated as the product of blood pressure, pulse rate, and ST-segment depression/Watt. Later the exercise tolerance and the difference of the exercise tolerance before and after the drug period was measured. The following parameters improved under gallopamil therapy: the gallopamil group showed a significant reduction of the anginal frequency/week (10 +/- 8 down to 3 +/- 2, p less than 0.001), the nitroglycerin consumption (1.4 +/- 1.4 down to 0.3 +/- 0.6, p less than 0.001), the ischemic index (from 63 +/- 24 down to 46 +/- 17, p less than 0.01), and the exercise tolerance (740 +/- 610 up to 1140 +/- 670, p less than 0.01).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)