Elevated concentrations of plasma atrial natriuretic peptide in intracranial hemorrhage

Abstract

The plasma concentrations of atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) were measured in 14 patients with intracranial hemorrhage, including 7 patients with brain edema and 7 without any evidence of brain edema. The plasma ANP concentrations in the patients with brain edema were elevated to 123.8 ± 28.1 pg/ml on day 1, followed by a gradual decrease to 111.4 ± 23.0 on day 3, 101.0 ± 21.6 on day 5, and 106.3 ± 25.7 on day 7, respectively. The ANP concentrations on day 14 showed a significantly lower level of 77.2 ± 17.6 (p<0.05). On the other hand, the patients without brain edema displayed no significant change in their plasma ANP concentrations, as follows : 46.3 ± 5.5 pg/ml on day 1, 44.4 ± 7.4 on day 3, 38.8 ± 4.8 on day 5, 40.8 ± 4.6 on day 7, and 36.9 ± 6.4 on day 14, respectively. The present findings indicate that the concentrations of ANP are elevated in intracranial hemorrhage with brain edema, suggesting that ANP may play an important role in the regulation of the intracranial pressure dynamics.