Objective: To compare oral nifedipine versus intravenous labetalol for acute blood pressure control in severe pre–eclampsia.

Design: Randomised prospective comparative study.

Setting: Government Doon Medical College, Dehradun.

Method: 100 pregnant women with severe hypertension (≥160/110 mm Hg) who required immediate BP control were randomised to receive either intravenous labetalol or oral nifedipine.

Main Outcome Measure: Time taken to achieve a blood pressure of  ≤150/100 mm Hg.

Results: The mean time taken to achieve target BP with labetalol was 30.6±11.53 minutes (mean ± SD) as compared with 27.4±11.25 minutes in those who received nifedipine (p=0.0483).

Conclusion: Both oral nifedipine and intravenous labetalol are equally efficacious in acute control of BP, however, oral nifedipine may be preferred due to ease of administration, flat dosing regimen, wide availability and low cost.