ABSTRACT
In comparison with angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors and calcium channel blockers, diuretics are cost-effective and, most important, they have been proven to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease and stroke in patients with hypertension. Three large-scale, long-term clinical trials in elderly patients with hypertension showed that low-dose diuretic therapy decreased the incidence of cardiovascular diseases, including morbidity and mortality from coronary heart disease.1-3. Thus, diuretics, along with fl-blockers, will remain first-line drugs for treatment of hypertension,4 particularly in elderly patients,5 and as a recommended pharmacological treatment of heart failure.6
