RESUMO
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the changes of coagulation and fibrinolysis status in patients with essential hypertension (EH) and observe the therapeutic effect of sustained-release nifedipine. METHODS: Ninety-nine EH patients were divided according to their diastolic blood pressure (DBP) into mild group (48 cases), moderate group (29 cases) and severe group (22 cases), and 25 patients among the groups were chosen at random to receive sustained-release nifedipine for 2 weeks. Twenty healthy subjects served as control group. Plasma D-dimer (DD), fibrin monomer (FM) and tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA) levels were determined in all the subjects by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). RESULTS: The plasma DD and FM levels were much higher, while tPA level was much lower in hypertensives than those of normal controls, exacerbating with the severity of the disease. DBP was positively correlated with plasma FM level (r=0.374,P<0.001). In patients with left ventricular hypertrophy, left ventricular enlargement and left atrial enlargement, higher levels of DD, FM and tPA were detected. Nifedipine treatment produced significant reduction in plasma DD and FM levels along with the increase in tPA level [DD: (40.7+/-23.5) mg/dl vs (23.8+/-16.5) mg/dl; FM: (7.0+/-1.6) ng/microliter vs (4.8+/-1.5) ng/microliter tPA: (0.31+/-0.14) ng/ml vs(0.41+/-0.05) ng/ml, P<0.001]. CONCLUSION: Enhanced coagulative activity and lowered fibrinolytic activity characterize EH patients and nifedipine may correct this disorder.
