ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the relationship between serum uric acid (SUA) and hypertension with the aim of increasing the level of information about a disease that currently affects a large percentage of the population of all ages. Intracellular uric acid could activate signaling mechanisms that stimulates the release of inflammatory mediators, vasoconstrictive substances, proliferative growth factors, and oxidants and induce mitochondrial dysfunction Uric acid is the end-product of purine metabolism and circulates in the blood where it is responsible for gout and kidney stones. Uric acid-lowering treatment has been shown to reduce blood pressure also in patients with established hypertension. The UK Clinical Practice Research Datalink involving 365 elderly patients with hypertension and 6678 controls, found that the treatment with allopurinol was associated with significant reductions in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure. The considerable amount of evidence supporting a close correlation between elevated levels of SUA and hypertension can have important therapeutic implications particularly for xanthine-oxidase inhibitors.
