Leptin Is Not Essential for Obesity-Associated Hypertension.

Background And Objective: Hyperleptinemia is supposed to play a causal role in the development of obesity-associated hypertension, possibly via increased sympathetic tone. Hence patients with congenital leptin deficiency should be hypotensive and their low blood pressure should increase under leptin substitution.

Subjects And Methods: To test this assumption, we examined ambulatory blood pressure, resting heart rate, Schellong test results, cold pressor test results, heart rate variability, catecholamine metabolites, and aldosterone levels in 6 patients with congenital leptin deficiency before as well as 2-7 days and 7-14 months after the start of leptin substitution.