By means of direct arterial perfusion of the adrenal glands of the hypophysectomized dog, it has been shown that synthetic lysine, arginine and acetyl arginine vasopressins stimulate the adrenal cortex directly to secrete hydrocortisone. Pressor activity and cortisol-stimulating activity were demonstrated to be independent of each other. Similar polypeptides, such as oxytocin, insulin, glucagon...

The syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion (SIADH) can be caused by a variety of drugs. Dopaminergic drugs might enhance the secretion of the antidiuretic hormone arginine vasopressin by reducing γ-amino butyric acid release through the dopaminergic receptor in supraoptic nucleus. A 75-year-old woman with Parkinson's disease developed asthenia, delirium, aggravated parkinsonia...

Cerebral salt wasting syndrome (CSW-cerebral salt wasting) was first described in 1950 by Peters. This syndrome can occur in patients who have sustained damage to the central nervous system (e.g. patients with subarachnoid bleeding, bacterial meningitis or after neurosurgery). Patients present with excessive natriuresis and hyponatremic dehydration. Differentiating this syndrome with the syndro...

The term cerebral salt wasting (CSW) was introduced before the syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone secretion was described in 1957. Subsequently, CSW virtually vanished, only to reappear a quarter century later in the neurosurgical literature. A valid diagnosis of CSW requires evidence of inappropriate urinary salt losses and reduced "effective arterial blood volume." With no gold st...

1. Ten patients on maintenance diuretic treatment received an intravenous infusion of antidiuretic hormone at a low rate for 1 hr. 2. A gradual reduction in mean plasma renin activity was observed and this was significant at 60 min. 3. There was a significant correlation between the initial value and the extent of the fall in plasma renin activity. There was no consistent change in blood pressu...