Background:
Since genetic heredity accounts for 30% of blood pressure variance, it is seen that the possibility of early-onset hypertension linked to autonomic dysfunction is increased by parental history of hypertension. Hence, in offspring of hypertensive parents, recording blood pressure alone is insufficient and requires an assessment of cardiac autonomic functions.
Aim:
To analyze the cardiovascular autonomic functions of normotensive individuals with a family history of hypertension and compare it with that of age and gender-matched controls.
Methods:
Comparative cross-sectional study conducted in Government Medical College, Kozhikode among 158 subjects (79 normotensives with family history of hypertension and 79 age and sex-matched controls) of age group 18-30 years by simple random sampling. Ewing’s battery of cardiovascular autonomic function tests performed and assessed using 16 channel PHYSIOLAB with PHYSIOPAC software. SPSS 25 software for Windows with Unpaired T-Test was used for statistical analysis.
Results:
Significant increase in sympathetic response was observed in the study group, as compared to controls, presumably due to inherited vascular reactivity. Since autonomic responsiveness to stress serves as a predictor of neurogenic hypertension, the tilt towards sympathetic overactivity may indicate autonomic imbalance preceding the onset of hypertension.
Conclusion:
Increase in sympathetic activity observed in the study group emphasize the effect of genetic influence on hypertension. Early detection, especially in offspring of hypertensive parents, by employing cardiovascular autonomic function tests, helps in implementation of preventive measures that halt the progression of disease
Key words: Cardiovascular autonomic function tests, Family history of hypertension, Ewing’s battery
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