Effects of furosemide-induced plasma volume reduction on plasma antidiuretic hormone in normal and hypertensive subjects.

Plasma antidiuretic hormone (ADH) was measured before and after furosemide administration in hypertensive patients (essential benign hypertensions with low plasma renin activity) and in normal subjects. Furosemide-induced reduction of plasma volume was about 10% after 2 hours. In normal subjects, plasma ADH rose progressively till the end of the study (1.5 pg/ml per hour corresponding to about 3 pg/ml per liter of plasma water lost) whereas it remained unchanged in hypertensive patients. There was an early increase of plasma renin activity (PRA) in normal subjects followed by a progressive fall. PRA response was blunted in hypertensive patients. These results show that volume-dependent ADH secretion is inhibited in patients with essential benign hypertension.