EFFECTS OF EPIDURAL ANALGESIA AND ATROPINE ON HEART-RATE AND BLOOD-PRESSURE VARIABILITY - IMPLICATIONS FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF BEAT-TO-BEAT FLUCTUATIONS
Gj. Scheffer et al., EFFECTS OF EPIDURAL ANALGESIA AND ATROPINE ON HEART-RATE AND BLOOD-PRESSURE VARIABILITY - IMPLICATIONS FOR THE INTERPRETATION OF BEAT-TO-BEAT FLUCTUATIONS, European journal of anaesthesiology, 11(2), 1994, pp. 75-80
Cardiovascular variables such as heart rate, arterial blood pressure,
stroke volume and the shape of electrocardiographic complexes all vary
beat-by-beat. This variability occurs because of the dynamic response
of cardiovascular regulatory systems to pertubations in cardiovascula
r function. We applied spectral analysis to the effects of sympathetic
vasomotor blockade by epidural analgesia and parasympathetic blockade
of the heart by atropine on the beat-to-beat variability of heart rat
e and blood pressure in humans. High-frequency fluctuations in heart r
ate (+/- 0.2 Hz) are caused by respiratory induced fluctuations of blo
od pressure, mediated by the vagus nerve. Low-frequency fluctuations (
0.06-0.12 Hz) are related to sympathetic baroreflex control of vasomot
or activity and heart rate. In our study, even partial parasympathetic
blockade of the heart by atropine decreased the power in the high and
low frequency heart rate fluctuations. There were no significant chan
ges in blood pressure fluctuations in either frequency range. Sympathe
tic blockade by epidural analgesia decreased only low frequency fluctu
ations of both heart rate and blood pressure. From a cardiovascular mo
del and our experimental results we support the view that high frequen
cy fluctuations in heart rate are due to the vagal response to blood p
ressure fluctuations caused by respiration and that the fluctuations a
round 0.1 Hz in both heart rate and blood pressure have their origin i
n the sympathetic baroreflex control loop of vasomotor activity.