We have shown that the aortic elasticity was increased by hypertensive doses of angiotensin II (ATII) in contrast to the decrement of femoral arterial elasticity. To clarify the regulatory mechanisms of arterial elasticity, we analyzed effects of various types of cardiovascular drugs on arterial elasticity in rabbits using the stiffness parameter β of the aortic (aortic β) and femoral arterial (femoral β) regions by measuring blood pressures at the right brachial artery, aortic bifurcation and tibial artery, electrocardiogram and phonocardiogram. Vasoconstrictor drugs ATII (300 ng/kg) and phenylephrine (10 µg/kg) as well as a cardiotonic drug dobutamine (30 µg/kg), each of which increased blood pressure by about 20 mmHg, decreased the aortic β and increased the femoral β. Vasodilator drugs nifedipine (300 µg/kg) and cilnidipine (30 µg/kg) as well as a cardiodepressor drug metoprolol (10 µg/kg), each of which decreased blood pressure by 10-15 mmHg, increased the aortic β and tended to decrease the femoral β. These results suggest that femoral arterial elasticity may be regulated by the pharmacological action of each drug. On the other hand, aortic elasticity may be regulated by pressure-sensitive intrinsic mechanism of aortic wall to optimize aortic elasticity, independently of pharmacological mechanisms of action of each drug.