title: Continuous warm blood cardioplegia preserves cardiac autonomic function.
abstract: We studied in anesthetized dogs, the effects of cardiopulmonary bypass with normothermic whole blood, crossclamping of the aortic root, and continuous warm blood cardioplegia on the ability of the efferent sympathetic nervous system to augment the heart and that of the efferent parasympathetic nervous system to depress the heart. In control states, heart rate, atrial force of contraction, and right and left ventricular wall systolic pressures were augmented by stimulation of the intrathoracic efferent sympathetic nervous system and by administration of isoproterenol into the systemic circulation. After 1 hour of normothermic cardiopulmonary bypass that utilized aortic crossclamping and continuous perfusion of the coronary arteries with normothermic blood (20 mEq/L potassium), cardiac-augmenting effects induced by the efferent sympathetic nervous system and by isoproterenol were similar. Depressive responses elicited by the efferent parasympathetic nervous system were also unaffected by these procedures. Continuous warm blood cardioplegia does not result in impairment of the efferent sympathetic nervous system regulating the heart.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.
authors.forename: D A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Murphy
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Armour
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001011:Aorta; D001769:Blood; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass / Q000379:methods*; D003250:Constriction; D004285:Dogs; D005260:Female; D006321:Heart / Q000187:drug effects / Q000294:innervation / Q000502:physiology*; D006324:Heart Arrest, Induced / Q000379:methods*; D006439:Hemodynamics / Q000187:drug effects; D007545:Isoproterenol / Q000494:pharmacology; D008297:Male; D009476:Neurons, Efferent / Q000502:physiology; D013564:Sympathetic Nervous System / Q000502:physiology; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D007545:Isoproterenol