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Biomedical subjects

D G Beevers

Publications and source records attributed to D G Beevers.

At least 325 records · Page 18Linked to original sources
PubMed1981

Echocardiographic features of malignant hypertension.

Computerised apex- and echocardiography was used to study left ventricular dimensions and function in 13 patients with untreated malignant hypertension and eight with severe benign hypertension. All patients had normal left ventricular cavity dimensions. Five benign hypertensives and malignant hypertensives with a previous history of hypertension had significant thickening of the septum and posterior wall. In eight malignant hypertensives without a previous history wall thicknesses were normal. The absence of ventricular hypertrophy in some cases of malignant hypertension suggests that it is sometimes of rapid onset and not preceded by a non-malignant phase. although fractional shortening and peak Vcf were normal in all the hypertensives, diastolic left ventricular function was frequently abnormal with delayed mitral valve opening, reduced peak rate of filling, and outward endocardial motion during isovolumic relaxation. Malignant hypertensives showed a cavity shape change during isovolumic contraction, and in those without a previous history the aortic second heart sound occurred earlier. The abnormalities of function are probably the result of a combination of factors including pressure overload, abnormal myocardial properties, and myocardial ischaemia, either regional or generalized and secondary to arteriolitis.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Racial differences in red cell cation transport and their relationship to essential hypertension.

Red cell cation transport has been studied in normotensive and essential hypertensive groups of white and black (West Indian) subjects. In vitro uptake of the potassium analogue 86Rb was measured during short-term incubation of erythrocytes in the presence and absence of ouabain. Sodium pump activity was significantly greater (p less than 0.0005) in white hypertensives than in white normotensives. No such difference was observed between black hypertensive and normotensives. 86Rb uptake was significantly lower in black than in white normotensive individuals; this racial differences was not due to a difference in sodium pump activity.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

Guanfacine: a new centrally-acting antihypertensive agent.

The centrally-acting antihypertensive drug guanfacine was studied in a group of 11 moderate hypertensives. In doses of 2 mg daily, an average reduction in diastolic blood pressure of 10.8 mmHg was achieved. Side-effects were few when doses were maintained below 3 mg daily. The blood pressure reduction was associated with a fall in plasma renin activity and an average weight gain of 1.8 kg. When guanfacine was tried in 6 very severe hypertensives who had proved resistant to other antihypertensive drugs, a similar reduction in diastolic pressure of 7 mmHg was achieved using a dose of 3 mg daily. It is considered that guanfacine is a useful new antihypertensive drug, effective in mild hypertension, and side-effects are few if doses are maintained below 3 mg daily. Above this dose, side-effects became prominent, and these included sedation, dry mouth and constipation.

Adult↗
PubMed1981

A comparison of hospital and general practice blood pressure readings using a shared-care record card.

Shared-care blood pressure record cards were issued to 149 consecutive hypertensive patients attending our hospital clinic. In 108 (72.5 per cent), general practitioners entered readings they had obtained onto the cards. The use of the record card has proved helpful in the management of patients, and we are encouraged by the co-operation of the family doctors.A comparison of blood pressures measured in hospital and in general practice showed that general practitioners found systolic pressures to be an average of 5.5 mm Hg lower than hospital doctors, but there were no differences in diastolic pressure. In many cases, wide discrepancies were found both in hospital and general practice. We conclude that it is a myth that patients' blood pressures are lower when they consult their family doctor, or that outpatient blood pressure readings are falsely elevated by the stress of hospital attendance.

Blood Pressure↗
PubMed1980

Salt and blood pressure in Scotland.

Dietary salt intake and urinary sodium excretion were compared in normotensive and hypertensive subjects in Renfrew, Scotland. All groups had high 24-hour urinary salt excretions, and hypertensive subjects did not eat or excrete more salt than normotensive subjects. The only significant relations found were a lower sodium excretion in hypertensive women than in normotensive women (p < 0.02) and a lower urinary sodium concentration in hypertensive men than in normotensive men (p < 0.05). These data provide no support for the hypothesis that dietary salt is a major cause of hypertension.

Creatinine↗
PubMed1980

Blood-lead and cadmium in human hypertension.

An epidemiological study amongst hypertensives and normotensives in Renfrew, Scotland, where drinking water hardness is very low (5 p.p.m.) and water-lead levels are commonly high, has shown a significant association between high blood-lead levels and high blood pressure. No association was found with indices of renal function, plasma renin or angiotensin II concentrations or serum uric acid levels. In a parallel study of blood-lead levels in Birmingham, England, where water hardness is low (20 p.p.m.) but water-lead levels are also low, high blood-lead levels were not found, no relationship was found with blood pressure and the prevalence of hypertension was lower than in Renfrew. We conclude that sub-clinic lead exposure from drinking water may be a factor in the development of hypertension. A study of blood-cadmium levels has shown no association between high blood pressure and sub-clinical cadmium exposure, but confirmed a close relation between blood-cadmium and cigarette smoking. We conclude that previous reports of a cadmium-blood pressure link may be confounded by failure to allow for the cigarette smoking habits of the subjects studied.

Adult↗