Hiba Dawood¹ , Qutaiba A Qasim¹

¹Clinical Laboratory Sciences Department, University of Basrah, Basrah, Iraq.

For correspondence:-  Hiba Dawood   Email: hibadawood1983@gmail.com

Received: 23 September 2025        Accepted: 19 November 2025        Published: 30 November 2025

Citation: Dawood H, Qasim QA. Comparative analysis of beta-blockers and calcium channel blockers in hypertension and atrial fibrillation: A focus on biomarkers and treatment outcomes. Trop J Pharm Res 2025; 24(11):1423-1428 doi: https://dx.doi.org/10.4314/tjpr.v24i11.10

© 2025 The authors.
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Abstract

Purpose: To investigate the effect of beta-blockers and calcium channel blockers in patients with hypertension and atrial fibrillation. Methods: This study sampled 350 participants from private cardiology clinics in Basra City, Iraq, with hypertension and atrial fibrillation. The participants were divided into groups A (received 25 mg metoprolol daily) and B (received 5 mg amlodipine). Blood pressure, heart rate and biomarkers such as aldosterone, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (HsCRP) and natriuretic peptide (BNP) at baseline, 12 weeks, and 24 weeks after treatment. Results: Treatment with metoprolol significantly improved heart rate compared to amlodipine (p < 0.05). Also, treatment with amlodipine significantly improved blood pressure compared to metoprolol (p < 0.05). Furthermore, BNP and hs-CRP were significantly reduced following treatment with metoprolol and amlodipine compared to baseline values (p < 0.05). Conclusion: Treatment with metoprolol and amlodipine significantly improves outcomes in patients with hypertension and atrial fibrillation. However, while calcium channel blockers were better at lowering blood pressure, beta blockers were far more effective at lowering heart rates. Multi-center studies with larger sample sizes are needed to investigate group-specific treatment solutions for patient care.

Keywords: Atrial fibrillation, Hypertension, Beta-blockers, Calcium channel blockers (CCBs)

Impact Factor
Thompson Reuters (ISI): 0.6 (2023)
H-5 index (Google Scholar): 49 (2023)