Effect of moderate hypoxemia on atrial natriuretic factor and arginine vasopressin in normal man

The object of this study was to assess the effect of moderate acute hypoxemia on plasma concentrations of atrial natriuretic factor (ANF), arginine vasopressin (AVP), plasma renin activity (PRA) and urinary excretion of prostaglandin E2 (UPGE2V). Eight volunteers were exposed for 2 hours to a gas mixture containing 10% O2, 4.5% CO2 and 85.5% N2. Hypoxia increased diastolic blood pressure and free water clearance. Hypoxia did not change the AVP, PRA or UPG2V, although increased ANF from 17.7 +/- 3.4 pg/mL to 27.2 +/- 1.7 pg/mL (p less than 0.005) at 120 minutes. ANF changes were closely associated with the rise in blood pressure.