Stellate Ganglion Phototherapy Using Low-Level Laser
Key result
Stellate ganglion phototherapy suppresses refractory electrical storm in ~64% of patients by reducing sympathetic activity.
- n=31
Why the study?
Autonomic nervous system modulation is an effective adjunctive therapy for electrical storm, but the effects of stellate ganglion phototherapy in healthy individuals and its efficacy in refractory electrical storm required investigation.
Does stellate ganglion phototherapy reduce sympathetic activity and suppress electrical storm in patients with refractory electrical storm?
Population
20 healthy volunteers and 11 patients with electrical storm refractory to medication, sedation, and catheter ablation
Comparison
Stellate ganglion phototherapy before vs after treatment
Design
Healthy volunteer study and clinical pilot study
Follow-up
3 months
Authors
Discussion
Loading...
Member takes
Implication
May support stellate ganglion phototherapy for refractory electrical storm; hypothesis-generating from small case series, needs randomized trials.
Structured PICO
Does stellate ganglion phototherapy reduce sympathetic activity and suppress electrical storm in patients with refractory electrical storm?
P
Population
20 healthy volunteers and 11 patients with electrical storm (ES) refractory to medication, sedation, and catheter ablation (total n=31).
I
Intervention
Ten-minute stellate ganglion (SG) phototherapy using low-level laser, performed twice weekly for 4 weeks.
O
Outcome
Heart rate variability, serum concentrations of adrenaline, noradrenaline, and dopamine (in healthy participants); suppression of electrical storm (in clinical patients).
Stellate ganglion phototherapy reduces sympathetic activity and may be a safe, effective adjunctive therapy to suppress refractory electrical storm in some patients.
Limitations
- Long-term efficacy remains unknown
- long-term efficacy remains unknown
Cite This Study
Nonoguchi et al. (2021) studied Electrical storm refractory to antiarrhythmic drugs and catheter ablation (n=31). Stellate ganglion phototherapy was evaluated on Suppression of electrical storm. Stellate ganglion phototherapy suppressed electrical storm in 7 of 11 patients (63.6%) with refractory disease, reducing sympathetic activity.