Plasma aldosterone response to acute stimulation in panhypopituitarism.

The influence of acute stimulation by ACTH, upright posture and angiotensin II on plasma aldosterone levels was assessed in human panhypopituitarism. While stimulation by ACTH in hypopituitary patients induced a plasma aldosterone increase similar to that observed in healthy controls, stimulation by upright posture or by infusion of angiotensin II resulted in a lower plasma aldosterone response than in controls in most of the patients. These results suggest that the presence of an anterior pituitary hormone, most likely ACTH, directly or indirectly exerts a permissive action on aldosterone secretion in man.