The status of element homeostasis in children and adolescents with essential arterial hypertension

Abstract

Aim. To study the features of element homeostasis in children and adolescents with different variants of essential arterial hypertension. Methods. The clinical and functional variant of arterial hypertension was established based on the data of 24-hour monitoring of the arterial blood pressure. Investigation of the element content in the blood serum and daily urine was performed using the method of atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The clearance and the excreted fraction of the investigated elements were measured. Results. Revealed was an increase of the content of lead in the blood serum, an increase in lead excretion with urine, an increase in its clearance and excreted fraction in patients with stable arterial hypertension. It has been shown that for children and adolescents with a variety of clinical and functional variants of arterial hypertension characteristic is an excess of the serum content of a toxic element (lead) over the content of an essential element (zinc), and these changes are most pronounced in the group with stable arterial hypertension. In children and adolescents with the increase in arterial blood pressure registered was a decrease in the content of zinc and magnesium in the blood serum, whereas the disturbances of element homeostasis relate to the metabolic type. The increase in the content of copper and calcium in blood serum of patients with high blood pressure is also a manifestation of the metabolic type of element homeostasis disturbances. Conclusion. The increased level of lead in blood serum in combination with its enhanced excretion may be a cofactor in the development of essential arterial hypertension in childhood and adolescence.