Plasma antidiuretic hormone levels in patients with normal and low renin essential hypertension, and secondary hypertension.

In order to investigate the antidiuretic hormone (ADH) in essential hypertension and secondary hypertension, plasma ADH levels were measured in normal subjects, in patients with normal and low essential hypertension, and in other patients with various forms of secondary hypertension. Plasma ADH levels were significantly lower in low renin essential hypertension and higher in malignant hypertension than in normal subjects. The plasma ADH levels tended to be lower in renal hypertension and primary aldosteronism, and higher in renovascular hypertension, but these differences were not statistically significant. From these results, it appeared that ADH might play a role in malignant hypertension, but not in the other hypertensive diseases.