Racial Disparity of Plasma Volume in Hypertensive Man

Excerpt

Many pathophysiologic mechanisms have been proposed to explain the role of plasma volume in human hypertension (1-3). Although most authorities agree that volume is an important factor in initiating or maintaining hypertension, an exact relation has not been established. Findings in the present study indicate that race may be important to consider in interpreting plasma volume measurements in hypertensive patients.

Plasma volume was measured in 37 hypertensive and normotensive subjects at the Veterans Administration Hospital in San Diego. Hypertensive patients were referred from the outpatient clinic for blood pressure evaluation, and normotensive subjects were apparently healthy volunteers. All subjects were