A comparative study of cardiovascular autonomic function in hypertensive and normotensive people

The mortality and morbidity due to hypertension has increased in recent decades. So the present study was undertaken to assess the functioning of autonomic nervous system in relation with cardiovascular haemodynamics in essential hypertention patients as compared to normotensive subjects. For this purpose cold pressor test, postural stress test and valsalva maneuver were used as cardiovascular autonomic function tests. It was found that significant rise in systolic blood pressure in hypertensive group of both genders (p 0.05) in females by cold pressor test. Postural stress test showed significant (p<0.05) fall in systolic blood pressure both in hypertensive males and females as compared to normotensive group. Valsalva ratio in hypertensive males is lower than that of normotensive group (p<0.001). So it can be concluded that there is definite cardiovascular autonomic dysfunction in hypertensive patients as compared to normotensive subjects and which may have significance in maintenance of raised arterial blood pressure.