[Vasomotor activity in the large arterial vessels and arterial hypertension].

Hypertension has long been considered to be a disease of the arterioles but it also concerns the great arteries. The hypothesis for this study was that the antihypertensive agents used in the large multicenter trials only partially correct the hemodynamic abnormalities of hypertension. The regression of the structural arterial changes responsible for the decreased arterial compliance, the regression of left ventricular hypertrophy without alteration of systolic function, the decrease in the variability of the blood pressure and the maintenance of regional blood flow should also be considered as therapeutic objectives for vasodilator antihypertensive therapy.