Fudim et al. Splanchnic Nerve Blcok for Acute Heart Failure. CIRCULATIONAHA.118.035260.full.pdf

In this first-in-man study, we tested a new therapeutic approach to the treatment of acute HF. The procedure, which aimed to modulate the splanchnic sympathetic tone through a minimally invasive regional nerve block, resulted in a marked reduction in intra-cardiac filling pressures and increase in cardiac output, primarily driven by a significant reduction in SVR and improved arterial vascular capacitance. The splanchnic vascular compartment may be a key player in the volume dysregulation in acute and chronic HF, even in the absence of increases of total body fluid volume.