Effects of Carotid Body Tumor Resection on the Blood Pressure of Essential Hypertensive Patients

摘要

Removal of the carotid body (CB) improves animal models of hypertension (HTN) and heart failure, presumably via withdrawal of chemoreflex-induced sympathetic activation. The effect of CB tumor (CBT) resection on blood pressure (BP) in subjects with HTN is unknown. We conducted a retrospective analysis of 20 subjects with HTN (BP≥140/90 mmHg or use of antihypertensives) out of 134 who underwent CBT resection. Short-term (from 3 months before to the first reading after 30 days from surgery) and long-term (slope of the regressions on time over the entire follow up) changes in BP and heart rate (HR) were ascertained and adjusted for covariates (interval between readings, total follow up, number of readings and changes in therapy). Age and duration of HTN were 56±4 and 9±5 years. Adjusted short-term decreases in systolic (SBP: −9.9±3.1, p<0.001) and pulse pressures (PP: −7.9±2.7, p<0.002) were significant and correlated with their respective long-term changes (SBP: r=0.47, p=0.047; PP: r=0.54, p=0.019). Also, there was a strong relationship between adjusted short-term changes in SBP and PP (r=0.64, p<0.004). Out of 12 subjects with concordant decreases in short- and long-term BP changes, 6 (50% of responders or 33% of the total) had short-term falls of SBP ≥10 mmHg and of PP ≥ 5mmHg. To our knowledge this study is the first to show that unilateral CBT resection is associated with sustained reduction of BP in subjects with HTN. Hence, we suggest that targeted removal of the CB chemoreflex conceivably has a role in the therapy of human HTN.