Abstract

Endothelial dysfunction occurs before the appearance of clinical symptoms and signs of cardiovascular diseases and their complications (hypertension, ischemic heart disease, diabetes, peripheral arterial disease, stroke, etc). The endothelium is the largest endocrine organ in the human body, which has many biologically important functions. Elevated arterial pressure and oxidative stress impair production of nitric oxide in the endothelial cells. The reduced amount of nitric oxide is expressed by increased arterial stiffness, which leads to structural changes in the arteries. Hence endothelial dysfunction is an additional independent risk factor for hypertension, and prevention of endothelial dysfunction is a novel intriguing opportunity in cardiovascular drug therapy. This review assesses the influence of calcium channel antagonists on endothelial function, arterial stiffness and structural changes in the arteries.