Studies of renin-aldosterone axis in stable normotensive and hypertensive renal allograft recipients.
Functional aspects of the renin-aldosterone axis were investigated in long-term normotensive and hypertensive renal allograft recipients. Unstimulated plasma renin and aldosterone levels were within control range in all patients and rose significantly in response to sodium depletion. However, no difference in the stimulated renin and aldosterone values between normotensive and hypertensive patients was noted. Baseline aldosterone secretory rates were elevated in all patients, but were higher in hypertensive patients than in normotensive patients. In both groups sodium depletion failed to augment this already elevated aldosterone secretion rate. Possibly, changes in the body pool and/or metabolic clearance rate of aldosterone account for elevations in plasma levels despite a relatively fixed secretory rate, though the role played by the lack of normal innervation of the kidneys cannot be ignored. It is unknown whether these observations may be causal or affected by other presently unknown or unmonitored factors. This in part may reflect unfolding problems in the understanding of nonrenal transplant hypertension.
D000328:Adult; D000450:Aldosterone / Q000378:metabolism*; D003404:Creatinine / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000378:metabolism*; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D008297:Male; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000378:metabolism*; D011188:Potassium / Q000378:metabolism; D012083:Renin / Q000097:blood*; D012964:Sodium / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous
D000450:Aldosterone; D012964:Sodium; D003404:Creatinine; D012083:Renin; D011188:Potassium