title: The effects of cold acclimation on electrocardiogram parameters in five species of turtles.
abstract: The effects of thermal acclimation at 25 or 5 degrees C on electrical activity in the heart were investigated in Pseudemys scripta, Terrapene carolina, Chrysemys picta marginata, Chrysemys picta dorsalis, Chelydra serpentina, and Sternotherus odoratus. The durations of the QRS complex and P-R, R-T and R-R intervals were found to increase with decreasing body temperature in all animals tested. The amplitudes of the P and T waves and QRS complex were dependent upon both acclimation temperature and test temperature. Differences between acclimation groups in the change in QRS amplitudes between 20 and 0 degrees C were statistically significant for all species.
mesh_terms: D000064:Acclimatization; D000818:Animals; D001831:Body Temperature; D003080:Cold Temperature; D004562:Electrocardiography; D006321:Heart / Q000502:physiology*; D006339:Heart Rate; D013045:Species Specificity; D014426:Turtles / Q000502:physiology*