Pargyline Treatment of Hypertension

Twenty-eight patients with hypertension have been treated with pargyline hydrochloride, a nonhydrazine amine oxidase inhibitor, alone or in combination with methyclothiazide, a thiazide diuretic. An excellent blood pressure response in elderly, less severely ill patients was noted following pargyline or combination therapy. In younger, more severly hypertensive patients, response was not universally satisfactory. Postural hypotension, impotence, and transient liver function abnormalities were noted in some of these patients. Further long-term studies with pargyline in the treatment of hypertensive disease appear to be warranted.