title: Coughs cause systemic blood flow.
abstract: Although it is known that rhythmic coughing can preserve consciousness during ventricular fibrillation, the arterial pressure transients which result have not yet been shown to reflect forward blood flow in man. The effectiveness of cough in causing forward flow in eight normal volunteers with bradycardia was studied. They coughed between cardiac cycles, using an audio and visual display of the electrocardiogram. The force of the cough was varied and measured with an oesophageal balloon. Blood flow was recorded with a Döppler velocity probe over the radial artery and a finger or ear photoplethysmograph. Motion artefact on the Döppler record due to coughing was excluded by transiently obstructing the brachial artery. We compared the areas under 5-10 consecutive Döppler and photoplethysmograph pulse flow tracings due to the cough and heart beat with those due to the immediately preceding heart beat alone. They were significantly increased. This augmentation was greater in those flow pulses accompanied by a more vigorous cough. It is concluded that coughing is associated with an effort dependent forward flow pulse in the arterial circulation.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001158:Arteries / Q000502:physiology; D001775:Blood Circulation; D003371:Cough / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004431:Ear, External / Q000098:blood supply; D004947:Esophagus / Q000502:physiology; D005385:Fingers / Q000098:blood supply; D005542:Forearm / Q000098:blood supply; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010991:Plethysmography; D011312:Pressure; D012039:Regional Blood Flow; D014463:Ultrasonography