Serum Uric Acid and Salt Sensitivity in the Normotensive Population: An Iranian Sample

Background: It is not clear whether the serum uric acid level is independently associated with the longterm incidence of hypertension. The aim of this study was to assess the association between serum uric acid and salt sensitivity in an Iranian normotensive population. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the Cardiovascular Research Institute, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, from July 2014 to October 2014. A group of 140 eligible healthy volunteers aged between 20 and 40 years with a normal blood pressure was enrolled in this study. After the determination of the baseline mean blood pressure and serum uric acid level, salt sensitivity was determined in all the subjects according to a protocol described by Weinberger and Fineberg via the infusion of normal saline and furosemide in 2 consecutive days. Blood pressure was determined before and 2 hours after these interventions. All the data were analyzed using the Student t-test, the χ2 test, and a multiple logistic regression model. Results: The average age of the study population was 25.73±3.35 years, and the mean body mass index was 23.1±2.9 kg/m2. According to the definition for salt sensitivity, 56 (42.7%) of the participants were sensitive and 75 (57.3%) were not sensitive to salt. Thirty-nine (29.8%) of the participants were hyperuricemic, 20 (51.3%) of whom were salt sensitive. Among the normouricemic participants, 49 (53.3%) were salt sensitive. These differences were not statistically significant between the salt-sensitive and salt-insensitive groups (P=0.23). There was no association between hyperuricemia and salt sensitivity even after adjustments were made for the demographic and anthropometric variables (OR=0.70 and 95 CI=0.29 to 1.68). Conclusions: We did not find an association between serum uric acid and salt sensitivity among our young Iranian normotensives.