Patent ID: 8521280

Claim:
A method for pacing a heart of a patient suffering from at least one of hypertension, and excessive retention of fluid and sodium, the method comprising: during a first pacing period synchronously pacing at least one atria and at least one ventricle of the patient's heart; during a second pacing period, synchronously pacing the at least one ventricle of the patient's heart at a ventricular pacing rate, and producing extra contractions of the at least one atria by asynchronously pacing the at least one atria of the patient's heart at an atrial pacing rate that exceeds the ventricular pacing rate, wherein the produced extra contractions stress a wall of the at least one atria beyond a natural stress condition, such that the stressed wall secretes a hormone at an elevated secretion level above a secretion level occurring while a natural atrial rate and a natural ventricular rate are equal; and achieving a beneficial therapeutic effect in the patient by the elevated level of the secreted hormone, wherein the beneficial therapeutic effect includes at least one of: limiting a degree of vasoconstriction, limiting a degree of sodium retention, increasing urine output, inhibiting a renin-angiotensin system, inhibiting endothelin secretion, inhibiting systemic and renal sympathetic activity, and counteracting effects of at least one of norepinephrine, endothelin, and angiotensin II.