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Sensitivity to angiotensin II of forearm resistance vessels in pregnancy
N Benjamin1, J Rymer, S D Todd
1Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Guy's Hospital Campus, London Bridge.
Resistance vessel sensitivity to angiotensin II in vivo was studied in 13 primigravid normotensive women (16-24 weeks gestation), and in 10 non-pregnant control women. Angiotensin II was infused into the brachial artery at doses of 10, 100, 1,000 and 10,000 fmol min-1 and forearm blood flow measured by plethysmography. Reduction in forearm blood flow at all concentrations of angiotensin II was significantly greater in non-pregnant than in pregnant women. The dose-response relationships, plotted semi-logarithmically, were similar in shape in each group but sensitivity to angiotensin II was reduced in pregnant subjects compared with non-pregnant women. This is most simply explained by an effect of pregnancy on the sensitivity to angiotensin II of vascular smooth muscle in forearm resistance vessels.
Resistance vessel sensitivity to angiotensin II in vivo was studied in 13 primigravid normotensive women (16-24 weeks gestation), and in 10 non-pregnant control women. Angiotensin II was infused into the brachial artery at doses of 10, 100, 1,000 and 10,000 fmol min-1 and forearm blood flow measured by plethysmography. Reduction in forearm blood flow at all concentrations of angiotensin II was significantly greater in non-pregnant than in pregnant women. The dose-response relationships, plotted semi-logarithmically, were similar in shape in each group but sensitivity to angiotensin II was reduced in pregnant subjects compared with non-pregnant women. This is most simply explained by an effect of pregnancy on the sensitivity to angiotensin II of vascular smooth muscle in forearm resistance vessels.