Correction of carotid artery stenosis by stent placement ameliorated paroxysmal hypertension after radiation treatment of hypopharyngeal carcinoma: a case report

Journal of Medical Case Reports

Andrew Stemer¹  Itzhak Brook²  Ezra Cohen³ 

[1] Departments of Neurology, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington DC, USA;Departments of Pediatrics, Georgetown University School of Medicine, Washington DC, 4431 Albemarle St NW, 20016, Washington DC, USA;The Neurology Center, Washington DC, USA;

关键词: Paroxysmal hypertension;    Carotid artery;    Stent;    Radiation;    Postprandial hypotension;    Hypopharyngeal carcinoma;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s13256-022-03293-y

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundParoxysmal hypertension can be associated with failure of the carotid artery baroreceptors due to past exposure to radiation treatment. This report describes a patient whose repeated paroxysmal hypertensive episodes were ameliorated following placement of a carotid artery stent for the treatment of carotid artery stenosis.Case reportA 79-year-old caucasian male was diagnosed with hypopharyngeal squamous cell carcinoma (T1, L0, M0) in 2006, and received 70 Gy intensity-modulated radiotherapy in 2006 and underwent a total laryngectomy in 2008. He experienced paroxysmal hypertensive episodes since 2010 that exacerbated in frequency in 2019. Eighty percent left internal carotid artery stenosis was demonstrated by ultrasound and arteriography. Angioplasty and stenting of the left carotid artery was performed. A Doppler ultrasound study performed 5 months after the stent placement did not reveal any hemodynamic stenosis in the left carotid artery. The patient experienced postprandial hypotension and had experienced only three episodes of paroxysmal hypertension in the following 24 months. He was able to abort paroxysmal hypertensive episodes by eating warm food.DiscussionThis is the first report of a patient whose paroxysmal hypertensive episodes that occurred following radiation of the neck subsided after placement of a stent in a stenotic carotid artery. The exact mechanism leading to this phenomena is unknown but may be due to several factors. The reversal of the carotid artery stent and improvement in blood flow to the carotid artery baroceptors may play a role in this phenomenon.ConclusionThe ability to ameliorate paroxysmal hypertensive episodes in a patient with carotid artery stenosis by stent placement may be a promising therapeutic intervention for paroxysmal hypertension.

【 授权许可】

CC BY