Effects of prazosin on platelet aggregation and plasma beta-thromboglobulin in essential hypertension

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Abstract
Platelet aggregation in response to ADP and plasma levels of .beta.-thromboglobulin (.beta.-TG) were followed in 10 subjects with essential hypertension without any manifest vascular complications and in 14 age-matched normotensive controls. The effects of prazosin on blood pressure and platelet function were also examined in the subjects with hypertension. Platelet aggregation in response to 5 .mu.M ADP was significantly greater in the subjects with hypertension than in the controls. Plasma .beta.-TG levels were 30% higher in the subjects with hypertension than in the controls. The increased platelet aggregation and plasma level of .beta.-TG in the subjects with hypertension returned to normal after the blood pressure had been controlled by prazosin therapy. The aggregation and release reactions of platelets apparently increase in uncomplicated essential hypertension, and prazosin may have some beneficial effects on the prevention of vascular complications in hypertension by normalizing platelet function as well as by lowering blood pressure.