[Changes in the activity of antioxidant enzymes in patients with hypertension]

The authors examined the activity of the antioxidative enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GP) in the blood of patients with permanent essential hypertension and hypertensive crises and changes in the activity of these enzymes when monotherapy with the calcium antagonist corinfar was used. A total of 62 patients (age 52.7 +/- 0.7 years) with hypertension and 25 apparently healthy volunteers (age 43.9 +/- 0.7 years) were examined. The activity of SOD and GP was found to be decreased by 33 and 22%, respectively, in patients with permanent hypertension and by 40 and 32%, respectively, during hypertensive crises. When hypertension was treated with corinfar, the activity of COD and GP was increased by 10 and 18%, respectively. Concurrently, these patients had subjective and clinical improvement. The findings suggest that impaired lipid peroxidation makes a great contribution to the pathogenesis of essential hypertension. It can be assumed that the use of antihypertensive agents producing effects on the level of lipid peroxidation products and the enhancements of the activity of antioxidative enzymes.