title: Association between plasma renin activity and metabolic cardiovascular risk factors in essential hypertension.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the relationships between plasma renin activity and metabolic cardiovascular risk factors in patients with essential hypertension.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients with uncomplicated essential hypertension (n = 36) with a diastolic blood pressure of 95-115 mmHg were studied. Assessment of plasma renin activity (PRA) related to urinary sodium excretion was used to define subgroups with high (n = 12), medium (n = 16) and low renin profiles (n = 8).
  
  
  METHODS
  Fasting plasma lipid levels were determined. Glucose, insulin and C-peptide responses to standard oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT) were measured.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Patients with high PRA had higher levels of plasma cholesterol (6.13 +/- 0.81 versus 4.67 +/- 0.7 mmol L-1, P < 0.05) and triglycerides (2.14 +/- 0.18 versus 0.98 +/- 0.13 mmol L-1, P < 0.05), than the low PRA group. HDL-cholesterol levels were lower in the high renin group than in the low renin group (1.05 +/- 0.04 versus 1.26 +/- 0.09 mmol L-1, P < 0.05). Insulin and C-peptide sums were higher in high PRA group (33.8 +/- 1.2 versus 25.1 +/- 0.9 and 2.6 +/- 0.3 versus 1.9 +/- 0.4 ng L-1, P < 0.05), than in the low PRA group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Essential hypertensive patients with a high renin profile display more pronounced dyslipidaemia and higher levels of plasma insulin than patients with a low renin profile. This may be one explanation for higher incidence of cardiovascular disease previously reported in high PRA group.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, University of Tartu, Estonia.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Allikmets
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Parik
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Teesalu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D002096:C-Peptide / Q000097:blood; D005260:Female; D005951:Glucose Tolerance Test; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000097:blood* / Q000209:etiology*; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D012083:Renin / Q000097:blood*; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D002096:C-Peptide; D007328:Insulin; D008055:Lipids; D012083:Renin