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Hypertension causes structural lesions in the microvasculature of the posterior nasal mucosa

Hypertension Research volume 44, pages 591–594 (2021)Cite this article

The rupture of the sphenopalatine artery or its branches is an otorhinolaryngological urgency whose treatment requires immediate surgical intervention [1]. Although this condition has an idiopathic origin in more than 80% of cases [2], some studies suggest an association with arterial hypertension (AH) [3, 4]. In the context of AH, the microvasculature and larger-caliber vessels undergo structural changes as an adaptation to the increase in blood pressure; chronically, these changes may lead to vessel weakening and rupture [5]. Noteworthy AH-related changes in vascular structure include atheroma plaque in the tunica intima of medium- and large-caliber arteries as well as sclerosis of the vascular walls of small arteries and arterioles. In both pathological processes, vascular weakening may lead to thrombotic lesions or rupture, as observed in the heart, brain, kidneys, and extremities of individuals with AH [4, 5]. To clarify the role of hypertension in the structure of small arteries, arterioles, and capillaries, this study sought to evaluate the structure of the posterior nasal cavity microvasculature in individuals with and without AH to identify possible factors related to vascular weakening and rupture.

Samples from the posterior nasal mucosa of 27 cadavers submitted for necropsy were obtained at the Anatomopathological Division of the Hospital de Base, Brasília, Brazil. Eleven were normotensive individuals (52 ± 13 years old), and 16 were hypertensive individuals (69 ± 16 years old) (Table 1). The study was approved by the local ethics committee (No. 152/2012), in accordance with Law 6,638/79 and the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki [6].

Table 1 Epidemiological profiles of normotensive and hypertensive individuals, including cause of death
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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Hospital de Base, Brasília, Federal District, Brazil

    Gustavo Lara Rezende

  2. Nucleus of Research in Applied Morphology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasília, Brasília, Federal District, Brazil

    Gustavo Lara Rezende, Maria da Glória da Silva, André Luiz Lopes Sampaio, Renata Oliveira Soares & Selma Aparecida Souza Kückelhaus

  3. Area of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasília, Brasília, Federal District, Brazil

    Gustavo Henrique Soares Takano

  4. State Health Department of the Federal District, Faculty of Medicine, University of Brasília, Brasília, Federal District, Brazil

    Carlos dos Santos Kückelhaus

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  1. Gustavo Lara Rezende
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  2. Maria da Glória da Silva
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Correspondence to Selma Aparecida Souza Kückelhaus.

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Lara Rezende, G., da Silva, M.d.G., Soares Takano, G.H. et al. Hypertension causes structural lesions in the microvasculature of the posterior nasal mucosa. Hypertens Res 44, 591–594 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41440-020-00572-3

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