Spinal cord injuries associated with cardiopulmonary complications.
Twenty-two of 83 consecutive patients with traumatic quadraplegia admitted to a regional spinal injury center had significant bradycardia. These bradycardic patients accounted for 66% of the cervical spinal cord injured patients' mortality. In general, bradycardia in patients with cervical spinal cord injuries appears to be due to unopposed vagal tone. This bradycardia is self-limited within 3-5 weeks after the onset of paraplegia and does not require permanent pacemaker therapy.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001919:Bradycardia / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology* / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010138:Pacemaker, Artificial; D010276:Parasympatholytics / Q000627:therapeutic use; D011782:Quadriplegia / Q000150:complications*; D013119:Spinal Cord Injuries / Q000150:complications*
D010276:Parasympatholytics