Atrial natriuretic peptide release at rest and with exercise after cardiac transplantation with bicaval anastomoses

Bicaval anastomoses in orthotopic cardiac transplantation offer the advantage of preserving the right atrial geometry. To elucidate the impact of this anastomotic technique on atrial natriuretic peptide plasma levels at rest and with exercise, nine patients were submitted to a symptom-limited supine exercise test. Atrial natriuretic peptide plasma levels in samples obtained from the right atrium were elevated at rest (274.4 +/- 60.4 pg/ml), at peak exercise (438.1 +/- 71.7 pg/ml), and thereafter (328.1 +/- 71.2 pg/ml) with respect to normal reference values of 21 +/- 1 pg/ml at rest and 92 +/- 14 at peak exercise. Renin, angiotensin, and aldosterone plasma levels were almost normal and did not indicate any pathologic processes in volume homeoostasis. Right-sided hemodynamic parameters were not correlated with atrial natriuretic peptide secretion. An adverse relationship between cold ischemic time of the donor organ and atrial natriuretic peptide release was found (r = 0.88, p < 0.0008), indicating that endocrine cardiocytes are sensitive to prolonged ischemia. Atrial natriuretic peptide release may thus be independent of the surgical approach, and other unique characteristics of the transplanted heart, such as denervation, are more likely to be responsible for elevated atrial natriuretic peptide plasma concentrations after orthotopic heart transplantation.