COCHRANE SYSTEMATIC REVIEW: Beta-blockers for hypertension
Implications for practice: Beta-blockers can have a modest effect on HTN but should not be considered a first line treatment.
Review Overview: Initiating treatment of hypertension with beta-blockers leads to modest reductions in cardiovascular disease and no significant effects on mortality. These effects of beta-blockers are inferior to those of other antihypertensive drugs. The GRADE quality of this evidence is low, implying that the true effect of beta-blockers may be substantially different from the estimate of effects found in this review. Further research should be of high quality and should explore whether there are differences between different sub-types of beta-blockers or whether beta-blockers have differential effects on younger and elderly patients.
LINK to Cochrane Library: Issue 11, 2012
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/14651858.CD002003.pub4/abstract
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