Endocrine Hypertension Screening Statement Released

The Endocrine Society has released a new scientific statement to help clinicians diagnose and treat endocrine hypertension. The statement has been published in Endocrine Reviews.

As hypertension may present initially in many endocrine disorders, making an early and accurate diagnosis of endocrine hypertension allows healthcare professionals to choose surgery or pharmacologic therapy for optimal clinical response.

The paper lists potential causes of high blood pressure which include tumors that produce adrenal hormones (eg, aldosterone, adrenaline), thyroid disorders, obstructive sleep apnea, or acromegaly. The prevalence and screening process for 15 endocrine disorders is described in the statement. 

Primary aldosteronism is described as the most common endocrine cause of high blood pressure, affecting as many as 1 in 10 people with high blood pressure. These individuals have a higher risk of cardiovascular issues, including stroke and death, when compared to those with similar blood pressure levels not caused by an underlying endocrine disorder. 

The Task Force that authored the Society’s statement aimed to review the different forms of endocrine hypertension, focusing on prevalence, clinical presentation, recommendations on when to perform case detection testing, and available case-detection tests.

William F. Young, Jr., MD, MSc, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, and Task Force chair, noted, “Healthcare providers should consider primary aldosteronism screening for most people who have hypertension.”

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