Hypertension and left ventricular hypertrophy are associated with impaired endothelium-mediated relaxation in human coronary resistance vessels.

Patients with hypertension and myocardial hypertrophy may have signs and symptoms of myocardial ischemia in the absence of obstructive coronary disease. Prior investigations have demonstrated impaired coronary flow reserve and have led to speculation that microvascular dysfunction might contribute to ischemia in these patients. Experimental studies have shown that the endothelium, an important regulator of microvascular tone, can be damaged by hypertension and is dysfunctional in cardiomyopathy. We hypothesized that endothelium-dependent vasodilation is impaired in the coronary microvasculature of patients with hypertension and ventricular hypertrophy.