Relationship between left ventricular hypertrophy induced by hypertension and the levels of insulin- like growth factor- 1 and nitric oxide

Objective To observe the changes of the levels of insulin- like growth factor- 1 (IGF- 1) and nitric oxide (NO) in the patients with essential hypertension (EH), and to explore their effects on the occurrence and development of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH). Methods 20 hypertensives with LVH(LVH group), 30 hypertensives without LVH(none LVH group), and 30 healthy volunteers(the control group) were included in the study. The serum IGF- 1 and NO levels of these participants were detected by radioimmunoassay (RIA) and nitrate reductase test and the data were analysed. Results The serum IGF- 1 levels in LVH and none LVH groups were significantly higher than that in the control group (P 0.01), whereas the serum NO levels in LVH and none LVH groups were lower (P 0.01); The serum IGF- 1 level in group was higher than that in none LVH group (P 0.01),while the serum NO level in LVH group was lower (P 0.01). There was a negative correlation between IGF- 1 and NO(r=- 0.435, P 0.05). LVMI was positively correlated with IGF- 1 (r=0.398, P 0.05) and negatively correlated with NO (r=- 0.653, P 0.01). The serum IGF- 1 levels in 17 normotensives with LVH after anti- hypertensive therapy were significantly lower than those before the treatment (P 0.05), whereas the serum NO levels were higher (P 0.01). Conclusions The level of serum IGF- 1 is markedly increased and the NO level decreased in the patients with EH, especially in those with EH and LVH. The imbalance between IGF- 1 and NO is probably involved in the pathophysiological process of the development of EH and LVH.