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Biomedical subjects

R R Hope

Publications and source records attributed to R R Hope.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Regional myocardial blood flow and ventricular arrhythmias following one-stage and two-stage coronary artery occlusion in anesthetized dogs.

Experiments were performed in 29 anesthetized dogs to compare effects of one-stage and two-stage coronary artery occlusion on ventricular arrhythmias and regional myocardial blood flow (MBF). Two periods of arrhythmias were observed and both were associated with evidence suggesting reentry; i.e., activity in ischemic zone electrograms which bridged the diastolic intervals preceding ventricular ectopic beats. Early ventricular arrhythmias followed progressive deterioration of conduction in the ischemic zone, whereas later arrhythmias occurred unexpectedly with the sudden appearance of bridging activity. One-stage occlusion produced a higher incidence of ventricular arrhythmias and ventricular fibrillation than two-stage occlusion. However, there was no difference in central ischemic zone blood flow, indicating that the protective effect of two-stage occlusion was not due to greater blood flow in this region. There results suggest that factors other than the degree of MBF reduction are important determinants of the incidence and severity of ventricular arrhythmias following coronary artery occlusion.

Anesthesia, General↗

Prolongation of the Q-T interval in lithium toxicity.

A patient with lithium intoxication and Q-T prolongation is described. As serum lithium levels fell with therapy, serial electrocardiograms (ECGs) demonstrated T wave changes more commonly associated with lithium. All changes were ultimately reversible.

Adult↗

Effect of lidocaine on conduction in the ischemic His-Purkinje system of dogs.

The effect of lidocaine on His-Purkinje conduction in dogs with ischemic damage to the His bundle was compared with the effect of lidocaine in normal dogs. The anterior septal artery was ligated in 14 dogs, and 30 minutes later atrial pacing was performed to increase residual ischemic damage. Four to 6 days later, His bundle recordings were obtained during sinus rhythm and atrial pacing before and after the administration of lidocaine in a dose of 2 mg/kg and a total dose of 4 mg/kg. His bundle recordings were also obtained in nine control animals beofre and after the administration of lidocaine. Lidocaine significantly increased the H-V time in the animals with ischemic damage during sinus rhythm and at all packing rates. It also resulted in advanced His-Purkinje conduction defects including His bundle block and right bundle branch block in these animals. In contrast, the effect of lidocaine in the normal animals was negligible. It is concluded that lidocaine significantly depresses His-Purkinje conduction in the setting of preexisting ischemic damage. These results suggest that lidocaine may be used as a diagnostic tool to unmask latent His-Purkinje conduction defects due to ischemia.

Animals↗

The significance of dissociation of conduction in the canine His bundle. Electrophysiological studies in vivo and in vitro.

Fractionated His bundle potentials were induced by ischemia or trauma in 30 anesthetized dogs, in vivo. Functional dissociation, i.e., alteration of the activation sequence of portions of these His bundle potentials was demonstrated in vivo as well as in 10 in vitro preparations of the His-Purkinje system. In vivo, plunge wire and electrode catheters were utilized to record from portions of the His bundle. During vagal-induced slowing of the heart rate, atrial pacing or His bundle pacing, His-Purkinje conduction as measured by the H-V interval was constant over a wide range of heart rates, 50-300/min. One or two hours after anterior septal artery ligation, His bundle damage manifested as split His bundle potentials (H, H'). Atrial pacing or proximal His bundle pacing induced H-H' delays with concomitant right or left bundle branch block patterns in ECG leads. However, distal His bundle pacing at comparable or even higher rates produced normal QRS complexes. In other cases, during atrial pacing or with progressive ischemia at a constant rate, H' progressively delayed during the H-V interval or even disappeared into the QRS complex with a concomitant occurrence of right or left bundle branch block. In vitro, a dissected septal preparation was studied containing the His bundle, proximal and distal right bundle and left bundle branches. Normal conduction throughout the His-Purkinje system was observed at pacing rates of 30-220/min. Punctate lesions, anatomically placed above the branching His bundle caused tachycardia-dependent, complete bundle branch blocked with concurrent temporal reversal of proximal and distal His bundle action potentials. These data suggest that ischemic or traumatic lesions in the His bundle may manifest on the electrocardiogram as bundle branch block patterns. From a clinical point of view, a critical site of lesion would markedly increase the liability for A-V blocked although the electrocardiogram alone would not indicate the actual site of lesion. Predestination of fiber tracts and alternative proposals to the pedestination theory are considered to explain QRS aberration due to exclusive His bundle lesions.

Action Potentials↗

Continuous concealed ventricular arrhythmias.

Twenty dogs were studied 3 to 9 days after myocardial infarction. None had ventricular arrhythmias during sinus rhythm, and ventricular automaticity (as revealed by sinus nodal crush procedure or vagal stimulation, or both) was within the normal range. With regular atrial pacing or pacing with long-short cycle sequences it was possible to induce ventricular arrhythmias in all animals. Quadrigeminal and pentageminal rhythms (19 of 20 dogs) and trigeminal (17 of 20) and bigeminal ventricular rhythms (8 of 20) were observed. These rhythms which were manifest or partially or entirely concealed were always associated with delayed and fractionated electrical activity within the "infarcted" subepicardium. Continuous electrical activity (electrical activity that bridged the interval between two or more successive beats) was recorded from the infarct zone. Such activity either was manifest as ventricular arrhythmia during atrial pacing or remained concealed until atrial pacing was stopped and then was manifest as ventricular tachycardia.

Animals↗

Re-entrant ventricular arrhythmias in the late myocardial infarction period. 1. Conduction characteristics in the infarction zone.

Dogs 3-7 days following ligation of the anterior descending coronary artery representing a remarkably stable model for re-entrant ventricular arrhythmias (RVA) and allowed detailed electrophysiologic studies of the re-entrant mechanism. In these dogs, we could regularly illustrate the presence of continuous electrical activity originating from the infarction zone (IZ) and bridging the diastolic interval between the initiating and re-entrant beats as well as between consecutive re-entrant beats. Conduction in the IZ was highly complex, with multiple potentially re-entrant pathways, functionally dissociated areas, and areas of localized ventricular fibrillation. Conduction disorders in ischemic myocardium were consistently tachycardia-dependent with the spontaneous onset of RVA specifically associated with a Wenckebach-like conduction pattern in a potentially re-entrant pathway. Both manifest and concealed re-entry, as well as re-entrant beats with regular extrasystolic grouping, constant or variable coupling, uniform multiform and bidirectional QRS configurations, were related to characteristic conduction patterns in the IZ. In summary, the study provides the first direct in vivo evidence of ventricular re-entry and demonstrates propensity for RVA and sudden death in the late myocardial infarction period.

Animals↗

Re-entrant ventricular arrhythmias in the late myocardial infarction period. 2. Patterns of initiation and termination of re-entry.

The electrophysiologic mechanisms for the initiation and termination of re-entrant ventricular arrhythmias (RVA) were critically analyzed in dogs 3-7 days following ligation of the anterior descending coronary artery, utilizing direct recordings of the re-entrant pathway (RP) from the epicardial surface of the infarction zone. Re-entry could occur during a regular cardiac rhythm if the heart rate is within the narrow critical range during which conduction in a potentially RP exhibits a Wenckebach-like (W) pattern with a beat-to-beat increment of conduction delay until the activation waveform is sufficiently delayed to re-excite normal myocardium. If a regular cardiac rhythm is associated with limited conduction delay in a potentially RP, premature beats within a critical range of coupling intervals could result in sufficient conduction delay to induce re-entry. Re-entrant ventricular arrhythmias may be unmasked on abrupt termination of a critical fast rate of cardiac pacing only if pacing was terminated during those beats of a W pattern associated with marked conduction delay in a RP. RVA could be ended by one or more properly timed premature beats that would pre-excite part of the RP. An electrophysiologic mechanism for R-on-T and its relationship to onset of ventricular fibrillation was shown, based on markedly delayed RP conduction of the beat prior to the one apparently coupled to the premature beat.

Animals↗

Re-entrant ventricular arrhythmias in the late myocardial infarction period. 3. Manifest and concealed extrasystolic grouping.

Re-entrant beats with regular extrasystolic grouping were seen in 44- of dogs 3--7 days following ligation of the anterior descending coronary artery. Utilizing direct recording of the re-entrant pathway (RP) from the epicardial surface of the infarction zone, we found extrasystolic grouping to be based on the infarction tachycardia-dependent conduction disorders in a potentially RP. Trigeminy and quadrigeminy were related, respectively, to a 3:2 and 4:3 Wenckebach-like conduction cycle in a RP. However, quadrigeminy could also be due to an underlying bigeminal rhythm with concealment of alternate re-entrant beats, i.e., concealed bigeminy. A bigeminal rhythm was the result of a 2:1 conduction pattern in a re-entrant pathway with a sufficient degree of conduction delay during the conducted beat of the 2:1 cycle to result in re-entry. A trigeminal or quadrigeminal rhythm could change to a bigeminal rhythm on critical shortening of the cardiac cycle. Fixed and variable coupling were related, respectively, to stable and changing conduction pattern in a re-entrant pathway. On the other hand, extrasystolic grouping could be concealed due to either block in the re-entrant pathway or entrapment in a small area of the closely bordering normal zone.

Animals↗