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 (HF), researchers led by Dr. Ahmed M. Selim reported during a poster session at the meeting.
“More studies should be done to test the sensitivity, specificity, and prognostic value of serotonin as a marker for congestive heart failure,” wrote the researchers from the department of cardiology at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York.
They noted that, while the relationship between HF 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 HF have never been tested.
Dr. Selim and his associates measured plasma serotonin levels in 29 patients admitted with decompensated HF, 61 with stable HF, and 22 normal controls.
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. “All results were highly significant,” the researchers wrote.
Dr. Selim and his associates stated that they had no relevant financial conflicts of interest.