A Comparative Trial of Clonidine (Catapres) and Guanethidine (Ismelin) in the Treatment of Hypertension

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Abstract
This trial has shown that both of the hypotensive drugs used were effective and no clear therapeutic preference for one or other was revealed by the sequential analysis. The clear advantage of clonidine was revealed when side-effects were compared. This was shown quite clearly by the analytical technique used. Thus there is some advantage in using clonidine as a hypotensive drug mainly from the point of view of side-effects although the impression that control was easier with clonidine was obtained. The importance of side-effects is considerable and in a recent study (Bulpitt & Dollery 1973) the importance of reducing prevalence was emphasized by the authors. Thus, when one can obtain satisfactory therapeutic control with a variety of different hypotensive drugs, the role of side-effects in therapy must be a considerable factor in deciding which therapeutic agent to employ.