Objectives
Previous studies suggest that otherwise healthy individuals who have a parental history of hypertension (PH+) have an accentuated reactive rise in catecholamines and cortisol to laboratory stressors as well as elevated plasma levels when compared to those with no parental history (PH−); however, few if any studies have evaluated whether parental history affects the responses of these hormones to changing environmental circumstances in everyday life. The purpose of this study was to compare urinary catecholamine (epinephrine and norepinephrine) and cortisol excretion and ambulatory blood pressures across three daily microenvironments between women with and without a parental history of hypertension.
Methods
The women in the study (PH+, N=62, age=35.2±9.1; PH−,N=72, age=33.8±10.0) worked in clerical, technical or professional positions at a major medical center in NYC. Urinary hormone excretion rates and ambulatory BP were measured across three daily microenvironments: work (11AM–3PM), home (approx. 6PM–10PM) and during sleep (approx. 10PM– 6AM). History group comparisons by microenvironment were made using repeated measures ANCOVA and ANOVA analyses.
Results
The results show that epinephrine excretion among PH+ women was 36% higher than PH− women (p<.008) over the entire day, and that nocturnal cortisol excretion was also greater among PH+ women (p<.045). PH+ women also had statistically significantly higher systolic (4 mmHg higher; p<.01) and diastolic (2 mmHg higher, p<.03) BP compared to PH− women across all daily microenvironments.
Conclusion
These findings suggest that there may be genetically-linked mechanisms which elevate tonic epinephrine levels and nocturnal cortisol levels that contribute to elevating circadian blood pressure.
BackgroundBetween July and September 2005, a preliminary sampling of the elderly population of Hizen-Oshima Island, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan was conducted by the local hospital’s nursing staff.ResultsReported here are preliminary results from this sample of 27 individuals with an average age of 71 years. Their ages ranged from 51 to 82 years, with a standard deviation (sd) of 7.4 years. In total, 33 aspects of physical and physiological variation were assessed on these 15 women and 12 men. As expected from previous studies of Japanese elders, our sample shows slightly elevated average blood pressure (142/81 mmHg, sd 16/10), but they are relatively lean (waist/hip = .9: sd 0.06) when compared to European or American standards. However, their average total cholesterol (TC = 210 mg/dl, sd = 42.8) is high compared to standards, as is their high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDLc = 55.4 mg/dl, sd = 15.1). Means, standard deviations (sd), ranges and upper bounds for quartile cut-points for all 10 variables used in the calculation of allostatic load (AL) were assessed. The overall average estimate for AL in this sample is 3.1 (sd = 1.58) and ranges from 1 to 7.ConclusionAL shows variability across men and women, has little correlation with age, and is associated with physiological variation in blood glucose, dopamine and uric acid.
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