In our studies, no difference in genotype distribution of Lys109Arg between the EH patients and the controls was found, which is consistent with a previous report by Gu et al.20 However, our studies identified that the Gln223Arg polymorphism of the LEPR gene was associated with EH in the Northern Han Chinese, and G allele carriers of Gln223Arg (GG+AG) showed higher risks of hypertension than AA homozygotes (P=0.007, OR=3.697, 95% CI 1.442–9.482). This evidence concerns the gene LEPR and hypertensive disorder.