News

High Serotonin Pointed to Decompensated Heart Failure


 

Major Finding: The mean level of plasma serotonin was 2.4 ng/mL in normal patients, 4.1 ng/mL in patients with compensated systolic heart failure, and 11.8 ng/mL in patients with decompensated systolic heart failure.

Data Source: A study of 112 patients at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York.

Disclosures: The researchers said that they had no relevant financial disclosures to make.

SAN DIEGO — Plasma levels of serotonin were significantly elevated in patients with decompensated systolic heart failure, compared with patients in the compensated state and with normal controls, according to a single-center study.

The finding suggests that serotonin has an active role in the progression of heart failure, researchers led by Dr. Ahmed M. Selim reported during a poster session at the annual meeting of the Heart Failure Society of America.

“More studies should be done to test the sensitivity, specificity, and prognostic value of serotonin as a marker for congestive heart failure and also to investigate the therapeutic benefits of the medications affecting this pathway,” wrote the researchers from the department of cardiology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York.

They noted that, while the relationship between heart failure and the serotoninergic system has been established in previous research, fluctuations in serotonin levels during the course of the disease and its correlation with exacerbation of heart failure have never been tested.

Dr. Selim, a heart failure research fellow, and his associates collected plasma serotonin levels from 29 patients who were admitted with decompensated heart failure, 61 patients with stable heart failure, and 22 normal controls. They excluded patients receiving medications affecting serotonin receptors and those with pulmonary hypertension. All heart failure patients were on stable doses of heart failure medications and had left-ventricular ejections fractions of 40% or less, while normal controls had a mean ejection fraction of 59%.

Overall, the mean age of patients was 55 years, and 62% were male.

The researchers reported that the mean serotonin level in the control group was 2.4 ng/mL, vs. 4.1 ng/mL in the compensated group and 11.8 ng/mL in the decompensated group. This was independent of age, race, renal function, diabetes, and hypertension. “All results were highly significant,” the researchers wrote.

Dr. Selim and his associates stated that they had no relevant financial disclosures to make.

Recommended Reading

HDL No Risk Marker When LDL Was Very Low : Achieving low LDL levels via statin use may reduce the clinical relevance of HDL levels.
MDedge Family Medicine
Masked Hypertension Guidelines Seen Lacking
MDedge Family Medicine
Decline Seen in Kaiser Members' Acute MI Rates
MDedge Family Medicine
BP Treatment Bar Lowered for African Americans
MDedge Family Medicine
Rivaroxaban Scores High Marks for Acute DVT : 'Results from EINSTEIN-DVT could transform the way physicians treat deep vein thrombosis.'
MDedge Family Medicine
Four Criteria for Assessing CVD Risk Identified
MDedge Family Medicine
Y-Chromosome Variant May Raise Risk of Heart Disease
MDedge Family Medicine
Stent Thrombosis Occurs More Often in Blacks
MDedge Family Medicine
Nebivolol Reduced High Blood Pressure in Hispanic Adults
MDedge Family Medicine
To Diagnose Carotid Stenosis, Start With Duplex Ultrasound
MDedge Family Medicine