title: Quantitative assessment of the autonomic nervous system activities during atropine-induced bradycardia by heart rate spectral analysis.
abstract: Using power spectral analysis of heart rate fluctuation, autonomic nervous system activities in bradycardia appearing in the initial phase of atropine administration were evaluated quantitatively in 16 healthy females. Atropine sulfate (10 micrograms/kg), diluted in 100 ml of 0.9% NaCl solution, was intravenously infused at a rate of 0.5 micrograms/kg per min. Electrocardiograms were sampled for 4 min for later analysis before and 0, 5, 10, 15 and 20 min after initiation of atropine infusion. Powers of low (LFC, 0.05-0.15 Hz) and high-frequency (HFC, 0.15-0.4 Hz) components in the power spectrum of R-R interval variations, and the LFC/HFC ratio were determined at each sampling point. HFC power at 0-4 min increased from 1.11 +/- 0.18 ms2 (mean) of baseline value to 1.37 +/- 0.19 ms2 (P < 0.05). The next 5-9-min value of 1.48 +/- 0.14 ms2 was the maximum, and the amount of atropine infused by 9 min was 4.5 micrograms/kg. The HFC powers following this point decreased. The 20-24-min value after 10 micrograms/kg atropine decreased to 0.21 +/- 0.03 ms2 (P < 0.01), which was lower than the previous 15-19-min value of 0.36 +/- 0.04 ms2 (P < 0.01). The LFC/HFC ratios showed no significant change for the initial 9 min of the atropine infusion. However, these ratios at 15-19 min and 20-24 min were increased from 0.50 +/- 0.04 (mean) of baseline value to 0.75 +/- 0.09 and 0.81 +/- 0.09, respectively (P < 0.01). A transient vagotonic state after atropine administration, followed by the well-known vagolytic state, was quantitatively detected by non-invasive spectral analysis of heart-rate fluctuation.
authors.affiliation: Surgical Center, Kumamoto University Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ikuta
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Shimoda
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kano
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001285:Atropine / Q000494:pharmacology*; D001341:Autonomic Nervous System / Q000502:physiology*; D001919:Bradycardia / Q000139:chemically induced*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000187:drug effects; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000187:drug effects*; D006801:Humans; D007275:Injections, Intravenous
chemical_list: D001285:Atropine