DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2017.v5i08.007

Pages: 2980-2984

Hypertension is most prevalent disorder worldwide and it is major risk factor for cardiovascular complications. Our knowledge is still limited about the cause of increased cardiovascular risk in essential hypertension. Autonomic nerves supplying the heart may also be involved in hypertension causing cardiac autonomic neuropathy (CAN). Evaluation of circulatory responses during sympathoexcitatory stress like isometric muscle contraction i.e. sustained hand grip (SHG) is a useful method to assess cardiac function. Therefore the present study was aimed to assess hemodynamic response (blood pressure and heart rate response) during sustained hand grip test in newly diagnosed stage 1 essential hypertensive subjects and compare the same with age, BMI and gender matched normotensive controls. This study was carried out at Department of Physiology, B. J. Medical College, Pune. Fifty newly diagnosed stage 1 essential hypertensive subjects were included in study group and fifty age and gender matched healthy normotensive subjects were included in control group. The difference between the systolic, diastolic blood pressure records (DBP) and heart rate just before the release of contraction at 30% of MVC and just before starting handgrip maneuver, was taken as a measure of sympathetic autonomic cardiac functions. In the present study the blood pressure response (∆SBP, ∆DBP) and heart rate response (∆HR) were statistically significantly increased (p<0.05) in newly diagnosed stage 1essential hypertensive subjects as compared to normotensive subjects during sustained isometric hand grip test. As there is increased blood pressure and heart rate response during sympathetic stress like sustained handgrip test we concluded that there is increased sympathetic activity in stage 1essential hypertension.