Yj. Chiu et al., CARDIOVASCULAR AND ENDOCRINE EFFECTS OF ACUPUNCTURE IN HYPERTENSIVE PATIENTS, Clinical and experimental hypertension, 19(7), 1997, pp. 1047-1063
It has been reported that acupuncture can decrease blood pressure in p
atients with hypertension, possibly by an endocrine mechanism. The aim
of the present study was to investigate the effects of acupuncture on
arterial blood pressure and the secretion of renin, vasopressin and c
ortisol in hypertensive patients. Acupuncture was performed in fifty u
ntreated essential hypertensive patients resting in the supine positio
n. Thirty min after acupuncture there were decreases in systolic press
ure from 169 +/- 2 to 151 +/- 2 mm Hg, diastolic pressure from 107 +/-
1 to 96 +/- 1 mm Hg, and heart rate from 77 +/- 2 to 72 +/- 2 bpm (P<
0.01). Plasma renin activity decreased from 1.7 +/- 0.4 to 1.1 +/- 0.2
ng/ml/2h (P<0.01), but there were no significant changes in plasma va
sopressin or cortisol concentrations. These results confirm that acupu
ncture decreases blood pressure in hypertensive patients, and suggest
that the decrease results, at least in part, from a decrease in renin
secretion.