BACKGROUND Computed tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and adrenal vein sampling (AVS) are used to distinguish unilateral from bilateral increased aldosterone secretion as a cause of primary aldosteronism. This distinction is crucial because unilateral primary aldosteronism can be treated surgically, whereas bilateral primary aldosteronism should be treated medically. PURPOSE ...

BACKGROUND Primary aldosteronism is recognized as the most frequent cause of secondary hypertension. Screening for primary aldosteronism by determination of the aldosterone-to-renin ratio (ARR) is much more frequently performed in current practice. However, most antihypertensive medications interfere with ARR determination, and although verapamil and alpha-adrenergic blockers are considered suf...

Conn emphasized the triad of hypertension, hypokalemia, and metabolic alkalosis in his seminal account of patients with primary aldosteronism.1 He believed that primary aldosteronism was a very common cause of hypertension. Kaplan introduced the discussion as to the actual prevalence of primary aldosteronism, a topic still debated today.2,3 Suffice it to say that hypokalemic hypertension is a f...

BACKGROUND The renal damage that is present in primary aldosteronism might reflect functional and potentially reversible abnormalities that are initiated by glomerular hyperfiltration. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationships of plasma renin and aldosterone concentrations with renal outcomes after treatment of primary aldosteronism. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, AND MEASURE...

Fifty years ago, Jerome Conn described 'a new clinical syndrome which is designated temporarily as primary aldosteronism' in a young patient with hypertension, severe hypokalaemia and a benign adrenocortical tumour, for whom an adrenalectomy cured both the hypertension and hypokalaemia. His report identified the condition known as aldosterone-producing adenoma, a form of curable hypertension. A...

BACKGROUND Experimental and human studies demonstrate that long-term exposure to elevated aldosterone levels results in cardiac and vascular damage. METHODS We investigated long-term cardiovascular outcomes in patients with primary aldosteronism after surgical or medical treatment. Fifty-four patients with or without evidence of adrenal adenomas were prospectively followed up for a mean of 7....

Two cases are reported as follows: 1) 1 female patient with accelerated-malignant hypertension secondary to an aldosterone-producing adrenal adenoma; and 2) 1 female patient with adrenal adenoma, severe hypertension, and hypertensive encephalopathy. This association is a rare clinical finding, and malignant hypertension may modify the hormonal characteristic of primary aldosteronism, making its...

Primary aldosteronism is a severe form of autonomous aldosteronism. Milder forms of autonomous and renin-independent aldosteronism may be common, even in normotension. We characterized aldosterone secretion in 210 normotensives who had suppressed plasma renin activity (<1.0 ng/mL per hour), completed an oral sodium suppression test, received an infusion of angiotensin II, and had measurements o...