Impaired control of vasopressin release in hypertensive subjects with cardiac hypertrophy.

The effects of graded lower body negative pressure (-10 and -40 mm Hg) on vascular resistance and plasma vasopressin, norepinephrine, and renin activity were assessed in seven hypertensive subjects with left ventricular hypertrophy and seven sex-matched and age-matched normotensive subjects. In both groups increasing levels of lower body negative pressure induced a progressive decrease in right atrial pressure and an increase in vascular resistance. In normal subjects plasma vasopressin, norepinephrine, and renin activity were progressively raised, whereas only the higher level of stimulation increased plasma renin activity, norepinephrine, and vasopressin in hypertensive subjects. Propranolol induced a significant increase in plasma vasopressin in normal subjects (from 1.3 +/- 0.1 to 2.0 +/- 0.1 pg/ml; p less than 0.05) but not in hypertensive subjects. In this latter condition -10 mm Hg lower body negative pressure failed to increase plasma vasopressin, norepinephrine, and renin activity in normal subjects. Propranolol abolished the change in plasma renin activity in both groups, reduced the increase in vascular resistance induced by -40 mm Hg lower body negative pressure in normotensive subjects, but did not modify the rise in vasopressin elicited by this stimulus in normal subjects or the humoral and hemodynamic reflex responses evoked in hypertensive subjects. These results suggest that cardiopulmonary receptors are involved in the control of vasopressin release in normal subjects, whereas in hypertensive subjects with left ventricular hypertrophy, this control is altered because of an impaired function of cardiopulmonary receptors.