Race and Therapeutic Drug Response

Abstract

The study by Zhou et al. in this issue of the Journal 1 compares the physiologic effects and the pharmacologic disposition of propranolol in a group of American whites and a group of Orientals of Chinese descent. The reason for the study was the perception that Chinese patients tended to respond to lower doses of propranolol than did Western patients. The surprising finding was not one but two differences — namely, the Chinese subjects responded more strongly to the drug, with a larger reduction in the heart rate and blood pressure, although they also metabolized propranolol more efficiently than did their . . .