Arterial water, cations, and norepinephrine in early and late renovascular hypertension.

In dogs made hypertensive renal artery stenosis and contralateral nephrectomy, the arterial and myocardial tissue content of water, cations (sodium, potassium, magnesium, calcium), and norepinephrine was measured 20 and 60 days after the operation. Hypertensive animals autopsied at the earlier stage of hypertension had significantly lower (-25 to-50%, P smaller than 0.01) arterial norepinephrine than either the sham or nonhypertensive animals. The water and cation content of arteries was unchanged, but aortic tissue contained significantly more water, sodium, potassium, and magnesium than the nonhypertensives. Hypertensives autopsied at 60 days also had lower arterial norepinephrine content than sham and nonhypertensive animals, but this refuction was not significant. Their arterial and aortic tissue contained more water and cations than the nonhypertensive, sham, unoperated, and unilaterally nephrectomized dogs. It is suggested that in the initial stage of renovascular hypertension the arterial norepinephrine content is reduced significantly, whereas at a later stage the arterial water and cations may be involved in the maintenance of an elevated blood pressure.