1998 Volume 21 Issue 4 Pages 279-282
The effect of an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, lisinopril, on gonadal hormones was assessed in 20 patients with essential hypertension. A daily dose of 5 to 20mg of lisinopril was administered for 6 mo. In male patients, the free testosterone (f-T) concentration decreased significantly (before, 13.8±2.4pg/ml; after, 9.9±1.5pg/ml: mean±SEM, p<0.05), whereas the plasma total testosterone (T), estradiol (E2), and sex hormone binding globulin (SHBG) concentrations were not significantly affected. Lisinopril had no effect on plasma T, f-T, or E2 concentrations in female patients, but significantly increased the plasma SHBG concentration (before, 48.0±6.1nmol/l; after, 62.7±6.7nmol/l: p<0.01). The results of this preliminary study suggest that lisinopril affects plasma f-T and SHBG concentrations. The clinical implications of lisinopril-induced changes in plasma f-T and SHBG concentrations remain to be clarified. (Hypertens Res 1998; 21: 279-282)