PERFUSION PRESSURE IN RELATION TO THE PRODUCTION AND CESSATION OF EXPERIMENTAL CARDIAC ARRHYTHMIAS

Abstract

The influence of perfusion pressure on ventricular fibrillation was studied in the isolated rabbit heart. Sudden drops in perfusion pressure inhibit ventricular fibrillation in a few minutes, whereas a slow decrease of the pressure does not stop the fibrillation, but nevertheless reduces the ventricular firing rate. High perfusion pressures facilitate the induction of fibrillation; low pressures delay the production of arrhythmias and shorten their duration. It is postulated that this effect of pressure is primarily mechanical and not strictly dependent upon changes in the coronary flow or in the myocardial temperature.