The Plasma Serotonin and Aortic Stenosis: a Pilot Study.

Calcific aortic stenosis is the most frequent valve disease in adults. Without therapeutic strategy, this disease leads to heart failure and death. Surgical aortic valve replacement is now a well tolerated cardiac surgery leading to excellent outcomes. Until recently, calcific aortic stenosis was considered to be histopathologically degenerative or passive in origin. It is now recognized, however, as a complex cellular process with features of atherosclerosis. It has been observed that drugs may slow dawn the progression of aortic stenosis in observational studies.

It has been suggested that serotonin, a monoamine neurotransmitter and a peripheral signal mediator, may be involved in the progression of aortic stenosis and also in its consequences on myocardium hypertrophy.

In the blood, serotonin in mainly stored in platelets, which release serotonin involved in post-injury vasoconstriction, thrombus formation, fibrosis and atherogenesis.

This study hypothesized those patients with aortic stenosis exhibit higher circulating serotonin levels than their counterparts without heart disease. In addition to circulating serotonin, its metabolite 5-HIAA will be systematically measured on all patients.

This study would allow to determine the potential of plasma serotonin as a prognosis marker and perhaps suggest the discovery of new targets for treatment of aortic stenosis.