Translations:Calcium channel blocker/29/en

Voltage-dependent calcium channels are responsible for excitation-contraction coupling of skeletal, smooth, and cardiac muscle and for regulating aldosterone and cortisol secretion in endocrine cells of the adrenal cortex. In the heart, they are also involved in the conduction of the pacemaker signals. CCBs used as medications primarily have four effects:

• By acting on vascular smooth muscle, they reduce contraction of the arteries and cause an increase in arterial diameter, a phenomenon called vasodilation (CCBs do not work on venous smooth muscle).
• By acting on cardiac muscles (myocardium), they reduce the force of contraction of the heart.
• By slowing down the conduction of electrical activity within the heart, they slow down the heart beat.
• By blocking the calcium signal on adrenal cortex cells, they directly reduce aldosterone production, which correlates to lower blood pressure.