Implant Tricks Brain To Lower Blood Pressure

Implant delivers shocks to lower blood pressure

By Colleen Barry, Newser Staff

Posted Mar 26, 2007 10:42 AM CDT

(Newser) – A pacemaker-like implant that relies on small electrical shocks may cut the risk of heart attack and stroke in half for patients with drug-resistant hypertension, a new study shows. The device, which sends electrical shocks through the neck's carotid arteries, tricks the brain into thinking blood pressure is even higher than it is—and the body kicks in to lower it.

Researchers don't understand why high blood pressure on its own doesn't trigger the brain's reaction. For now they focusing on the results: a blood pressure drop of at least 20 points, a boon for the millions of Americans who suffer from hypertension that doesn't respond to medication.

Blood pressure reading. (Getty Images)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Electric Stimulation Revives Man in Near-Coma

Case brings hope, raises questions

(NEWSER) - Electric stimulation may help improve the brain function of patients in a minimally conscious state, a case study reported in Nature reveals. A 38-year-old man who was mute and barely conscious for nearly 6 years is able to name objects, perform precise movements, and eat without the aid of a feeding tube after doctors used electrodes implanted in his brain to stimulate what's called the central thalamus. More»

Controversy Rages Over Diabetes Drug's Heart Risks

FDA official says superiors ordered her to back off serious warning

(NEWSER) - Troubling questions about the diabetes drug Avandia persisted yesterday as an FDA official revealed that she was barred from recommending a critical warning about the medication, the Times reports. In the run-up to congressional hearings that began today, manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline rushed to disseminate interim clinical findings in hopes of blunting the controversy. More»

Diabetes Drug Ups Heart Risk

New study documents dangers of Avandia, but company nixes recall

(NEWSER) - A popular diabetes drug may increase heart attack risks, a study reported in the New England Journal of Medicine concludes. Patients who took Avandia, which treats Type 2 diabetes, were 43% more likely to have a heart attack than those who took a placebo, the Cleveland Clinic study found. More»

Research Gives Alzheimer's Patients Hope

New study suggests disease-related memory loss may be reversible

(NEWSER) - Alzheimer's patients may be able to recover some memory by using a combo of drugs and mental stimulation, a new study in the journal Nature concludes. Mice with an Alzheimer's-like condition were more likely to remember an electric shock if they had taken a drug stimulating brain-cell growth or lived in playground-like cages. More»

Bacteria Battle Depression

Research shows brain produces serotonin as an immune response

(NEWSER) - Clinical depression may be treatable with bacteria, doctors at Bristol University posit. They got the idea when they observed lung cancer patients inoculated with harmless Mycobacterium vaccae who showed reduced symptoms and improved mental health. The brain produces serotonin as an immune response, the docs hypothesized, raising the low serotonin levels associated with depression and resulting in a sunnier outlook. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Implant Tricks Brain To Lower Blood Pressure

Implant delivers shocks to lower blood pressure

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

medicine • medical breakthrough • health • hypertension • heart • implants • brain • blood pressure • medical research • heart attack

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Electric Stimulation Revives Man in Near-Coma

Case brings hope, raises questions

Controversy Rages Over Diabetes Drug's Heart Risks

FDA official says superiors ordered her to back off serious warning

Diabetes Drug Ups Heart Risk

New study documents dangers of Avandia, but company nixes recall

Research Gives Alzheimer's Patients Hope

New study suggests disease-related memory loss may be reversible

Bacteria Battle Depression

Research shows brain produces serotonin as an immune response

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?

Implant Tricks Brain To Lower Blood Pressure

Implant delivers shocks to lower blood pressure

Bookmark & Share

OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

medicine • medical breakthrough • health • hypertension • heart • implants • brain • blood pressure • medical research • heart attack

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

Electric Stimulation Revives Man in Near-Coma

Case brings hope, raises questions

Controversy Rages Over Diabetes Drug's Heart Risks

FDA official says superiors ordered her to back off serious warning

Diabetes Drug Ups Heart Risk

New study documents dangers of Avandia, but company nixes recall

Research Gives Alzheimer's Patients Hope

New study suggests disease-related memory loss may be reversible

Bacteria Battle Depression

Research shows brain produces serotonin as an immune response

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

Site Maps

Tools

More News

What is Newser?