[Diagnosis and treatment of primary aldosteronism]

Twenty-eight patients with primary aldosteronism were treated from 1974 to 1990. The serum potassium concentration was higher than normal level in all patients with the exception of one whose serum potassium concentration was normal. All of 14 tested patients had low renin values. The plasma aldosterone concentration was higher than standard value in all of 5 patients, and the A/PRA ratio was more than 400. Spironolactone administered preoperatively could not only normalize serum potassium concentration level and blood pressure, but also predict postoperative prognosis of hypertension. Only 37.5% of adenomas were detected by retroperitoneal pneumography with tomography in the early period. 80.0% of adenomas were found by B-ultrasonography, and 92.8% by CT after 1982. The operation was done through abdominal incision because of indefinite localization of adenoma before 1982, and the operation was performed through lumbar incision because of definite localization of adenoma after 1982.