P.057 AORTIC DISTENSIBILITY BY NUCLEAR MAGNETIC RESONANCE IN ESENTIAL HYPERTENSION

It is demonstrated that Essential Hypertension is accompanied by a reduction of large artery distensibility (Dist), which represents a marker of demonstrated prognostic significance. Dist can be assessed by echotracking derived systo-diastolic changes in aortic diameter versus blood pressure changes. However, a less operator dependent and more precise assessment might be obtained by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). This study was done to compare aortic (Ao) Dist obtained by echotracking and NMR in normotensive and hypertensive patients. We studied 14 treated essential hypertensives (age 36 ± 3.5 years, blood pressure 126 ± 3/78 ± 1.7 mmHg means ± SE) and 15 matched normotensives controls (blood pressure 116 ± 3.0/73 ± 2.4 mmHg). Systodiastolic changes in thoracic (T, 1 cm above the celiac tripode) and abdominal (A, 1 cm above bifurcation) Ao were obtained by either method. Dist was calculated via the Reneman formula using tonometric carotid pulse pressure. NMR Dist values were systematically greater than the echotracking one (Hypertensives T 7.2 ± 0.5 vs 3.0 ± 0.5 , A 6.0 ± 0.5 vs 2.9 ± 0.4 1/mmHg 10−1 ,Normotensives, T, 8.6 ± 0.5 vs5.2 ± 0.5, A 7.5 ± 0.5 vs3.6 ± 0.3 1/mmHg 10−1 p