March 18, 2024 — Cedars-Sinai’s Smit Heart Institute recently became one of four facilities in the United States and the first on the West Coast to install a new device aimed at lowering blood pressure in patients with hard-to-treat hypertension. The facility was used for

Cedars-Sinai is part of a clinical trial testing the safety and effectiveness of the device, which is now commercially available after approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in late 2023.

Florian Rader, MD, MSc. Photo credit: Cedars-Sinai

“This is another tool in our arsenal for patients whose high blood pressure has not been controlled with medication or lifestyle changes,” said Florian, medical director of the Smit Heart Institute Hypertension Center of Excellence. says Rader, MD. He is also the principal investigator on the Cedars-Sinai trial.

For some patients, having this procedure may mean reducing the amount of medication they take each day.

“Patients with treatment-resistant hypertension often take four or more medications to manage their symptoms,” Rader said. “These patients often have uncontrolled blood pressure and are at significantly higher risk of heart attack, stroke, and kidney failure.”

This device sends ultrasound energy through the kidney’s arteries to kill surrounding nerves, which are overactive in many people with high blood pressure. Research shows that reducing the activity of these nerves can lower blood pressure.

To deliver the ultrasound energy where it is needed, the interventional cardiologist threads a thin, flexible tube called a catheter through an intravenous line, from the groin to the aorta and into one of the renal arteries. The tip of the catheter has an ultrasound transducer and is covered with a water-filled balloon that cools and protects the inner wall of the renal artery. The catheter is connected to a generator that powers and controls the ultrasound catheter.

Once the catheter is in place, the cardiologist uses a remote control to send ultrasound energy through the walls of the renal arteries and into the surrounding nerves. Each delivery of ultrasound energy lasts a few seconds and is typically made about two to three times at different locations within the same artery. The cardiologist then guides the catheter into the renal artery that enters the other kidney and repeats the process. Once complete, your cardiologist will remove the catheter and intravenous line.

The entire procedure takes approximately 1 hour.

Dr. Suhail Dohad. Photo credit: Cedars-Sinai

“This is a new way to target the neurobiological processes involved in hypertension, where drug therapy is not always effective,” said Suhail, an interventional cardiologist at the Smit Heart Institute who performed the procedure.・Dr. Dohad said.

Smit Heart Institute experts focus on personalizing care.

Christine Albert, MD, MPH. Photo credit: Cedars-Sinai

“Patients who come to Smit Heart Institute have options that are a direct result of our passion for researching new treatments for cardiovascular disease,” said Dr. said Christine Albert, MD, MPH. Distinguished Chair of Cardiology.

For more information, please visit www.cedars-sinai.org.