Use of continuous saralasin infusion to control hypertension

Saralasin acetate, a competitive inhibitor of angiotensin II, was administered as a continuous infusion to two pediatric patients for 8 and 13 days, respectively, to control hypertension. Both patients had become refractory to parenterally administered antihypertensive medications and had an ileus that precluded drug treatment orally. Both patients had a reduction in blood pressure of 30% in response to intravenous infusion of saralasin as a diagnostic test. In the patient with renal failure, neither saralasin nor ultrafiltration was effective alone, but blood pressure was controlled when their use was combined. In these two patients the continuous infusion of saralasin proved to be an effective means for blood pressure control and was unassociated with any recognized adverse effects.