Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 24, 2026

Methods to Quantify Pharmacologically Induced Alterations in Motor Function in Human Incomplete SCI
Published on: April 18, 2011
Effect of serotonin reuptake inhibitors on pulmonary hemodynamics in humans
Hilde Pleym1, Guri Greiff, Tom Mjorndal
1Department of Cardiothoracic Anesthesia and Intensive Care, St. Olav University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway.
Background:
Serotonin promotes pulmonary arterial vasoconstriction and pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cell proliferation, thereby having the potential to increase pulmonary arterial blood pressure. Although serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs) might inhibit further deterioration in patients with manifest pulmonary arterial hypertension, they may induce pulmonary hypertension in healthy newborns after fetal exposure. As it is unclear whether treatment with SRIs affects pulmonary hemodynamics in adults without pulmonary hypertension, the aim of the present study was to investigate the effect of SRIs on pulmonary hemodynamics in such subjects.
Methods:
Sixteen patients with stable angina pectoris scheduled for first time coronary artery bypass grafting were included in the study. Of these 8 were currently treated with an SRI (the SRI group) and 8 were not (the control group). Pulmonary arterial pressures were measured before induction of anesthesia by means of a pulmonary artery catheter. Serotonin transporter and 5-HT(2A) receptor gene polymorphisms and platelet 5-HT(2A) receptor expression were studied to elucidate their possible role as modifying factors.
Results:
No patients in any of the groups had pulmonary arterial hypertension. Mean pulmonary artery pressure was 15.0 mmHg in the SRI group and 14.5 mmHg in the control group (P = 0.50; 95% confidence interval for the difference, -2.9 to +3.9 mmHg). Neither were there any significant differences between the groups for any of the other hemodynamic variables studied. The various gene polymorphisms and the extent of platelet 5-HT(2A) receptor expression did not influence the hemodynamic variables.
Conclusions:
SRI treatment did not significantly influence pulmonary hemodynamics in patients without pulmonary hypertension.
Keywords:
Serotonin; Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors; Pulmonary hemodynamics; Pulmonary hypertension.
Related Concept Videos
Drugs Affecting GI Tract Motility: Serotonin Receptor Agonists
Treatment for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: Endothelin Receptor Antagonists
ETs are synthesized through a complex sequence of enzymatic steps, primarily involving an enzyme referred to as endothelin-converting enzyme (ECE). Of...
Antidepressant Drugs: Tricyclics, SSRIs, and SNRIs
Drugs Affecting Neurotransmitter Release or Uptake
Nonlinear Pharmacokinetics: Dependence of Elimination Half-Life and Dose Clearance
A study on guinea pigs examined the...
Treatment for Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension: Prostacyclin Receptor Agonists
These agonists bind to the IPR receptor situated on the plasma membrane of the pulmonary artery smooth muscle cells. This binding triggers a cascade of reactions known as the GS-AC-cAMP-PKA pathway. This pathway results in the relaxation of smooth muscle...
