Heterogeneous responses to changes in dietary salt intake: the salt-sensitivity paradigm

Blood pressure responses to increases and decreases in dietary salt intake are heterogeneous. In some hypertensive individuals, decreases in blood pressure with salt restriction are clinically significant and approach that achieved with medication. In others, little or no change in blood pressure occurs, whereas in still others, blood pressure may actually increase with salt restriction. The heterogeneous responses are partly acquired and involve the influences of age, the intake of other electrolytes, and the influence of certain medications. Genetic predisposition may also play a substantial role because salt sensitivity is increased in black individuals and in persons with non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. Some uncommon but readily diagnosed salt-sensitive genetic syndromes, such as glucocorticoid-remediable aldosteronism and Liddle syndrome, have been identified. Short-term volume expansion and contraction and longer-term dietary interventions appear to be reproducible and may be used to identify salt-sensitive and salt-resistant individuals; however, these maneuvers are cumbersome and cannot be used on a large scale. Molecular genetic techniques for identifying individuals with salt-sensitive and salt-resistant essential hypertension are not yet available, but if the putative gene polymorphisms are identified, such techniques may replace the current trial-and-error methods.