title: Open heart surgery increases the levels of histamine in arterial and coronary sinus blood.
abstract: The possible release of histamine into the coronary circulation during reperfusion of the cold, cardioplegic heart was investigated during open heart surgery in 13 patients (cardioplegic arrest 54 (35-120 min) (median (range)), cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) 96 (65-360) min. Samples were drawn concomitantly from coronary sinus and arterial blood before cardioplegia and during myocardial reperfusion for measurement of histamine (radioenzymatic method). Additional arterial samples were drawn pre-, per- and postoperatively. CPB induced a sustained increase in arterial histamine (from 4.02 +/- 2.71 nmol/l preoperatively (mean +/- SD) to maximum 16.31 +/- 7.12 nmol/l, p < 0.009). Immediately before cardioplegia histamine levels were higher in arterial than coronary sinus blood (9.24 +/- 4.85 versus 4.04 +/- 2.07 nmol/l, p < 0.002). During myocardial reperfusion coronary sinus histamine increased to levels similar to that of arterial blood. In conclusion, histamine is released during CPB. Before cardioplegic arrest, there is a net uptake of histamine by the heart, which is abolished during reperfusion, possibly due to increased cardiac release of histamine.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University of Tromsø, Norway.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Valen
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kaszaki
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nagy
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vaage
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass; D003326:Coronary Circulation / Q000502:physiology; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006632:Histamine / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015425:Myocardial Reperfusion; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D006632:Histamine