Abstract
Objective: To study the role of increased sympathetic tone in pathogenesis of hypertension in patients with essential hypertension with neurovascular compression.
Methods: Twenty-three patients with essential hypertension, 13 patients with secondary hypertension, and 46 normotensive subjects were investigated. Neurovascular compression was evaluated by MRT. The power spectral components of heart rate variability as indices of autonomic nerve tone were determined to investigate the possibility that sympathetic tone mediates the neurovascular compression-induced increase in blood pressure.
Results: Neurovascular compression of the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) was observed in 70% of essential hypertension group, none of secondary hyperension group and 16% of normotensive group (P < 0.001). the age-adjusted low-frequency power spectral density (a-psd) (0.04 to 0.15 hz), which is an index of sympathetic tone, was significantly higher in patients with essential hypertension (139.5 ± 6.7%) with neurovascular compression than in essential hypertension patients without neurovascular compression (92.2 ± 6.8%), normotensive subjects with (102.8 ± 13.0%) and without neurovascular compression (100.1 ± 4.1%), and patients with secondary hypertension (95.7 ± 10.2%) (P < 0.001). there was no significant difference in the high-frequency a-psd (0.15 to 0.40 hz), which is an index of vagal tone, among groups.
Conclusions: Neurovascular compression was not always associated with an increase in sympathetic nerve tone. Hypertension was present in subjects with neurovascular compression, who had increased sympathetic tone but not in those with normal sympathetic tone. An increase in sympathetic tone may mediate the neurovascular compression-induced increase in blood pressure.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 digital issues and online access to articles
$119.00 per year
only $9.92 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Morise, T., Horita, M., Kitagawa, I. et al. The potent role of increased sympathetic tone in pathogenesis of essential hypertension with neurovascular compression. J Hum Hypertens 14, 807–811 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.jhh.1001114
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.jhh.1001114
Keywords
This article is cited by
-
c-Src in paraventricular nucleus modulates sympathetic activity and cardiac sympathetic afferent reflex in renovascular hypertensive rats
Pflügers Archiv - European Journal of Physiology (2011)
-
Efficacy of an L- and N-type calcium channel blocker in hypertensive patients with neurovascular compression of the rostral ventrolateral medulla
Hypertension Research (2009)
-
Biofeedback treatment of prehypertension: analyses of efficacy, heart rate variability and EEG approximate entropy
Journal of Human Hypertension (2007)
-
The spectrum of magnetic resonance imaging findings in hypertension-related neurovascular compression
Neuroradiology (2006)