Heart Rate ..Part 3 ..Beta blockers as good agents

An important distinction needs to be made between specifically reducing heart rate vs. what is more typically done,which is reduction of heart rate with a Beta-adrenergic blocker.

Besides decreasing heart rate,B-adrenergic blockade also can decrease cardiac contractility, alter metabolism, lead to decreased arterial resistance, and increase venous vascular resistance.The response to Beta-blockade is thus an integration of all these effects.

Because heart rate is such an important determinant of myocardial oxygen demand, reduction of maximum heart rate as well as prevention of surges in heart rate make good sense in patients with fixed coronary obstructions and limitations in the coronary supply of oxygen.

A series of studies showed beneficial effects of Beta-adrenergic antagonists in patients after myocardial infarction.

There is also evident improvement in clinical symptoms and an improvement in work capacity with use of Beta-adrenergic blockers in patients with stable angina.

However, a more complicated picture arose when Beta-adrenergic blockade was used to prevent cardiac
ischemic events in large populations at lower risk.

In the next post post we will discuss the another aspects of Beta Blockers effects.

Comments

The pressure volume loop...

In the pressure-volume loop below, cardiac work is best represented by: the area of the curve the slope of the line from points C to D the distance of the line from points C to D the slope of a line from points A to D .. .. ... .... ... .... .... .... In the pressure-volume loop below, cardiac work is best represented by: the area of the curve Cardiac work is the product of pressure and volume and is linearly related to myocardial oxygen consumption. Cardiac work is best represented by the area of the curve of a pressure-volume loop.

Anaphylaxis updates part 2- Empty Ventricle Syndrome

Patients with anaphylaxis should not suddenly sit, stand, or be placed in the upright position. Instead, they should be placed on the back with their lower extremities elevated or, if they are experiencing respiratory distress or vomiting, they should be placed in a position of comfort with their lower extremities elevated. This accomplishes 2 therapeutic goals: 1) preservation of fluid in the circulation (the central vascular compartment), an important step in managing distributive shock; and 2) prevention of the empty vena cava/empty ventricle syndrome, which can occur within seconds when patients with anaphylaxis suddenly assume or are placed in an upright position. Patients with this syndrome are at high risk for sudden death. They are unlikely to respond to epinephrine regardless of route of administration, because it does not reach the heart and therefore cannot be circulated throughout the body

Steroids In Perioperative period...The Multi-purpose Drugs

1-Steroids are not Bronchodilator ,but have well established usefulness in hyper-reactive airway. They are also said to have a permissive role for bronchodilator medication. They can be administered orally, parenterally or in aerosol form 2- Steroids have been commonly used in chemotherapy for prevention of nausea along with other anti-emetic agents . Dexamethasone was found to be highly effective when given immediately before induction rather than at the end of anesthesia . 3- Steroids do exert analgesic effects. Various routes of administration of steroids include parentral, local infiltration at operated site , as an adjuvant in nerve blocks and central-neuraxial blockade. 4 - Steroids cannot be the mainstay of therapy in anaphylaxis because of the delayed onset of action, so they are used as adjunct after initial treatment with epinephrine. 5- Steroids (Dexamethsone) are of value in reduction or prevention of cerebral edema associated with parasitic infections and neopla...

sedationstation

Search This Blog