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Arterial response during cold pressor test in borderline hypertension
A B Lafleche1, B M Pannier, B Laloux
1Department of Internal Medicine and Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (U337), Broussais Hospital, 75014 Paris, France.
The American Journal of Physiology
|July 31, 1998
Summary
The cold pressor test (CPT) reduces pulse-pressure amplification by increasing carotid pulse pressure more than brachial pulse pressure. This sympathetic stimulus also decreases arterial distensibility in both borderline hypertensives and controls.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Physiology
- Hypertension Research
- Autonomic Nervous System Function
Background:
- Previous studies showed sympathetic activation via lower body negative pressure increases pulse-pressure amplification.
- The hemodynamic effects of the cold pressor test (CPT) on pulse-pressure amplification remained uninvestigated.
- Understanding arterial responses to different sympathetic stimuli is crucial for cardiovascular health.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if the cold pressor test (CPT) alters pulse-pressure amplification similarly to lower body negative pressure.
- To compare changes in carotid-brachial pulse-pressure amplification and arterial distensibility during CPT in borderline hypertensives and normotensive controls.
- To explore differential arterial responses to sympathetic stimulation based on the underlying mechanism.
Main Methods:
- A comparative study involving ten borderline hypertensive subjects and ten age-/sex-matched normotensive controls.
- Ablation tonometry was used to measure carotid-brachial pulse-pressure amplification.
- Echotracking technique assessed brachial and carotid arterial distensibility before and during CPT.
Main Results:
- CPT significantly increased blood pressure without altering heart rate.
- Pulse-pressure amplification tended to disappear, with a greater increase in carotid than brachial pulse pressure, indicating earlier wave reflection at the carotid site.
- CPT significantly decreased both carotid and brachial distensibility, with more pronounced effects observed in normotensive controls compared to borderline hypertensives.
Conclusions:
- The cold pressor test (CPT) reduces pulse-pressure amplification in humans, a finding that can impact arterial distensibility calculations.
- CPT induces differential arterial responses, decreasing distensibility more in controls than in borderline hypertensives.
- Sympathetic stimuli may elicit varied arterial responses depending on the activation mechanism (reflex vs. global stimulus).