Effects of Melatonin to Reduce Nocturnal Hypertension in Patients With Neurogenic Orthostatic Hypotension
Status:
Terminated
Trial end date:
2019-05-28
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
Neurogenic Orthostatic Hypotension (NOH) is clinically defined as a consistent drop in
systolic blood pressure (SBP) ≥30mmHg upon standing from a seated or lying position. However,
50% of NOH patients also have associated supine hypertension. It has been proposed that
supine hypertension is the result of intact post-ganglionic sympathetic nerves and therefore
due to residual sympathetic tone. Furthermore, research investigating the effects of
melatonin shows blood pressure implication of this naturally secreted hormone. Specifically,
melatonin has been investigated as a non-traditional anti-hypertensive agent for patients
with essential and nocturnal hypertension. Central and peripheral mechanisms have been
proposed to help explain how melatonin reduces blood pressures. Therefore, we aim to identify
NOH patients as having either intact or denervated post-ganglionic sympathetic nerves,
monitor the correlation to supine hypertension and subsequently investigate the effects of
melatonin on blood pressure in these patients.