Hypertension and Sodium Retention in Bilaterally Nephrectomized Man

Abstract

Total exchangeable body sodium (TEBS), total body water (TBW), and blood pressure were estimated in patients with terminal renal disease undergoing hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis. Serial studies were carried out in four bilaterally nephrectomized patients. In eleven patients, some of whom had undergone bilateral nephrectomy while the others had an endogenous creatinine clearance of 3 ml/min or less, only the TEBS and blood pressure were studied. Four of the eleven patients were investigated on two or more occasions, and seven on a single occasion. There was a significant (P < 0.001) correlation between blood pressure—both systolic and diastolic— and TEBS, but not between blood pressure and TBW. The increased sodium retention in renoprival hypertension might be due to an increase in intracellular exchangeable sodium.