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Biomedical subjects

W D Hall

Publications and source records attributed to W D Hall.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Blood pressure, plasma volume, and catecholamine levels during enalapril therapy in blacks with hypertension.

The effect of enalapril, an antihypertensive inhibitor of angiotensin-converting enzyme, on plasma catecholamine levels and plasma volume (PV) has not been well established. In a randomized, double-blind study, 29 subjects (28 blacks and one white) received one of the following dosing regimens: hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ), 25 mg twice a day (group 1; n = 12); enalapril, 10 mg twice a day (group 2; n = 12); or enalapril, 10 mg twice a day, with HCTZ, 25 mg twice a day (group 3; n = 5). Dosages were doubled after 4 wk if diastolic blood pressure was greater than or equal to 90 mm Hg. After 8 wk of therapy, supine blood pressure decreased by 24.1/16.0 mm Hg (systolic/diastolic) in group 1, by 10.8/4.0 mm Hg in group 2, and by 48.0/27.8 mm Hg in group 3. Mean values of supine plasma levels of norepinephrine, epinephrine, and dopamine did not change with therapy. PV fell 7.9% in group 1, 1.3% in group 2, and 5.0% in group 3. There were no correlations between changes in PV and blood pressure, but a decrease in PV correlated with an increase in plasma norepinephrine levels in the group treated with HCTZ alone (r = -0.65) and in all 29 subjects combined (r = -0.45). Enalapril alone was not very effective in lowering blood pressure in these subjects, but the combination of enalapril with HCTZ was very effective. There was no evidence of a direct effect of enalapril on the sympathetic nervous system or on PV.

Adult↗

Time course of regression of left ventricular hypertrophy in treated hypertensive patients.

In a prospective study, 32 hypertensive patients with echocardiographic evidence of left ventricular hypertrophy were treated with methyldopa, hydrochlorothiazide, or methyldopa and hydrochlorothiazide combined. Echocardiograms and electrocardiograms were obtained in each of the 32 patients before treatment, at the point of initial blood pressure control, and then one, three, and six months thereafter; in 27 patients these studies were also obtained after 12 and 18 months. Left ventricular end-diastolic posterior wall thickness decreased in seven patients whose blood pressure was controlled with methyldopa alone (p less than 0.01) and in 17 patients whose blood pressure was controlled with methyldopa and hydrochlorothiazide combined (p less than 0.01); in both groups, the reduction in left ventricular posterior wall thickness at end-diastole was apparent one month after blood pressure control was established (p less than 0.05). In contrast, no significant reduction in left ventricular posterior wall thickness at end-diastole was observed in eight patients who had equivalent control of blood pressure with hydrochlorothiazide alone (p = 0.34). During the 18-month follow-up period, ventricular septal thickness at end-diastole decreased in the group treated with methyldopa and hydrochlorothiazide combined (p = 0.03); whereas, ventricular septal thickness at end-diastole appeared to increase in the group treated with hydrochlorothiazide alone (p less than 0.01). These results suggest that evidence of regression of left ventricular hypertrophy may be detected as early as one month after blood pressure is controlled with methyldopa or methyldopa and hydrochlorothiazide combined; whereas, long-term control of hypertension with hydrochlorothiazide alone was not associated with evidence of regression of left ventricular hypertrophy. Although the patient number are small, these data suggest that there are differences in the long-term effects of diuretics and sympatholytic drugs on left ventricular anatomy, which may, in part, relate to divergent effects on the sympathetic nervous system.

Adult↗

Presence of the "Beaumont" protein in serum of oral contraceptive users.

The level of the "Beaumont" protein present in serum was measured by a population of 223 black and 76 Caucasian women with different exposures to oral contraceptives (OCs). No differences were found in the values in nonusers, past users, current users, or new users of OCs. The values were higher in black nonusers and users than in comparable Caucasian groups, suggesting a racial difference. A group of 55 thrombotic women were subclassified by type of thrombosis and exposure to OC therapy. No significant difference was seen between the values in thrombotic women exposed or not exposed to OCs. A similar result was obtained when the types of thrombosis (arterial or venous) were compared. These results do not confirm Beaumont's hypothesis that antibodies are induced by contraceptive steroids in a subgroup of women on OC therapy.

Adult↗

Blood pressure and oral progestational agents. A prospective study of 119 black women.

Blood pressure and body weight were carefully measured in 119 young black women before and after 6 to 24 months of contraceptive therapy with oral progestational agents (minipills). Results are compared with 673 women followed during continued use of nonhormonal contraceptive methods. Minipill therapy (0.35 mg of norethisterone) was associated with no significant (p greater than 0.05) increase in either systolic or diastolic blood pressure means. Minipill users did not develop diastolic blood pressures of 90 mm Hg or more during the study period. Substantial weight gain occurred as a side effect.

Adolescent↗

Variation of ethinylestradiol blood levels among healthy women using oral contraceptives.

Data concerning ethinylestradiol (EE) blood levels among 93 healthy women using oral contraceptives are presented. Seventy-two per cent of the observed variation in EE blood levels was unexplainable on the basis of time since ingestion of the last oral contraceptive, day of menstrual cycle, race, age, weight, height, blood pressure, cigarette consumption, alcohol consumption, diurnal variation, or lifetime use of oral contraceptives.

Adult↗

Blood pressure changes and oral contraceptive use: a study of 2676 black women in the southeastern United States.

Blood pressure (BP) and weight were measured on 2676 black women attending a large southeastern family planning clinic. Repeat measurements were made after a minimum of six and upt to 24 months on 673 women who continuously used nonhormonal contraceptive (OC) therapy, and 1390 women who continuously used OCs. The mean change in systolic blood pressure (SBP) adjusted for initial BP and change in per cent ideal body weight is +1.44 mmHg in the new users of OC. This slight increase in SBP is statistically significant (p = 0.04) relative to the +0.41 mmHg increase observed in the control group. However, the adjusted diastolic blood pressure (DBP) change (+0.46 mmHg in new OC users and +1.54 mmHg in the control group) fails to support the hypothesis of a greater increase in DBP in new OC users. The adjusted mean rise in mean arterial BP does not differ significantly between new OC users and the control group. The proportion of women developing a DBP greater than or equal to 90 mmHg during the average follow-up interval of one year is 2.4% in the control group, 1.0% in the new OC users and 0.2% in the continued OC users. These results provide evidence that OC use has no significant effect on the level of mean arterial BP in black women followed for 6-24 months; and fail to support the hypothesis of a causal relationship between OC use and elevated BP in black women.

Adolescent↗

Clinical hyperthyroidism in a patient receiving long-term hemodialysis.

A variety of metabolic and endocrine abnormalities are encountered in chronic renal failure. Nontoxic goiter and laboratory results suggesting hypothyroidism are known. Less well known are thyroid function tests suggesting hyperthyroidism in clinically euthyroid patients. To our knowledge, ours is the first documented case of a patient who experienced both clinical and biochemical hyperthyroidism after four years of long-term hemodialysis therapy.

Adult↗

Allergic laryngospasm on initiating oral propranolol therapy.

A 29-year-old woman suffered acute laryngospasm on taking the initial dose of propranolol hydrocholoride for the treatment of hypertension associated with a hyperdynamic circulatory state. Hypersensitivity to the tartrazine additive used as a stabilizing agent in oral propranolol appeared the likely cause of anaphylaxis, although a direct hypersensitivity to propranolol itself could not be excluded.

Administration, Oral↗