Hyperinsulinemia is not a cause of cortisol-induced hypertension.

Abstract

There is much interest in the relationship of hypertension to hyperinsulinemia. Six male volunteers received cortisol, 50 mg orally four times daily, for 5 days. Plasma insulin concentration increased from 11.8 +/- 3.0 mU/L to 16.1 +/- 4.0 mU/L (P = .034). Fasting glucose increased from 4.7 +/- 0.3 to 5.8 +/- 0.1 mmol/L (P = .001). The insulin-to-glucose ratio was unchanged. Octreotide has been reported to lower blood pressure in obese, hyperinsulinemic, hypertensive patients. The hypothesis that cortisol-induced hypertension might be secondary to steroid-induced hyperinsulinemia was examined by determining whether reversal of hyperinsulinemia by octreotide would reverse cortisol-induced hyp..