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Endocrine Abstracts (2022) 81 EP12 | DOI: 10.1530/endoabs.81.EP12

1Saint Petersburg State University, Saint Petersburg State University Hospital, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation; 2North-Western State Medical University n.a. I.I. Mechnikov, Department of Endocrinology, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation; 3Saint Petersburg State University, Medical Faculty, Saint-Petersburg, Russian Federation.


Introduction: Prolonged QTc interval is a known risk factor for developing ventricular tachyarrhythmias. QTc prolongation is often reported in patients with pheochromocytoma, however the literature data on this issue are rather heterogeneous. Here we report the results of QTc measurement in patients with pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma (PPGL) in comparison to hormonally inactive benign adrenal tumors.

Methods: The test group included 204 patients with pheochromocytoma and 2 with paraganglioma. 27 people with hormonally inactive benign adrenal tumors (HIBAT) served as a control group. QT interval was measured during standard 12-lead ECG before surgical intervention for the disease, and then corrected with Bazett formula (QTcB). The interval was categorized into gender-specific categories. For women, the cutoff points were ≤450 ms (normal), 451 to 470 ms (borderline), and >470 ms (prolonged), and for men ≤430 ms (normal), 431 to 450 ms (borderline), >450 ms (prolonged). The pattern of arterial hypertension (i.e. paroxysmal, sustained or mixed type) was evaluated according to complaints, anamnesis and clinical examination results. Numerical data are presented

Results: Medians of QTcB were similar and reached 416 [392, 436] ms in patients with PPGLs and 413 [398, 435] ms in patients with HIBAT (P=0.975, Mann–Whitney U test). The intervals were categorized in test group and control group as normal in 169 (82.04%) and 21 (77.77%), borderline in 22 (10.68%) and 5 (18.52%), prolonged in 15 (7.28%), and 1 (3.70%) patient respectively. The hypothesis that the clinical course type of PPGL may influence QTcB was tested. Patients who had sustained or mixed type of tumor-induced arterial hypertension, which may indicate continuous catecholamine exposure, were compared to those with paroxysmal hypertension or asymptomatic disease. In the first subgroup QTcB counted 413 [389, 432] ms, in second it was 428 [400, 451] ms (P=0.011, Mann–Whitney U test). The number of patients with borderline or prolonged QTcB was 21 (13.55%) in first subgroup and 16 (31.37%) in second (P=0.007, Yates’s chi-squared test, odds ratio 2.9 [95%CI: 1.4, 6.2]).

Conclusion: Our data suggest that pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma may be associated with increased QTc, however this effect is limited to certain risk groups. Patients with sustained tumor-induced hypertension, which probably means prolonged catecholamine exposure, are at risk of prolonged QTc.

Volume 81

European Congress of Endocrinology 2022

Milan, Italy
21 May 2022 - 24 May 2022

European Society of Endocrinology 

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