A second look at beta blockers and blood pressure

A beta blocker alone isn't usually the best choice for simple, uncomplicated high blood pressure.

Beta blockers have long been a mainstay for controlling blood pressure when it creeps too high. The first one, propranolol, appeared in 1964. Because it made such a big difference in treating angina (chest pain triggered by exercise or stress) and it shed some light on what regulates the heart, its inventor, Sir James Black, was awarded a Nobel Prize.