Journal of applied physiology
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Comparative Study
Multiple inert gas elimination technique by micropore membrane inlet mass spectrometry--a comparison with reference gas chromatography.
The mismatching of alveolar ventilation and perfusion (VA/Q) is the major determinant of impaired gas exchange. The gold standard for measuring VA/Q distributions is based on measurements of the elimination and retention of infused inert gases. Conventional multiple inert gas elimination technique (MIGET) uses gas chromatography (GC) to measure the inert gas partial pressures, which requires tonometry of blood samples with a gas that can then be injected into the chromatograph. ⋯ We found close agreement of retention and excretion of the gases and the constructed VA/Q distributions between GC and MMIMS, and predicted PaO2 from both methods compared well with measured PaO2. VA/Q by GC produced more widely dispersed modes than MMIMS, explained in part by differences in the algorithms used to calculate VA/Q distributions. In conclusion, MMIMS enables faster measurement of VA/Q, is less demanding than GC, and produces comparable results.
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Cardiac baroreflex is a fundamental component of the cardiovascular control. The continuous assessment of baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) from spontaneous heart period (HP) and systolic arterial pressure (SAP) variations during general anesthesia provides relevant information about cardiovascular regulation in physiological conditions. ⋯ We found the following: 1) traditional time and frequency domain approaches (i.e., baroreflex sequence, cross-correlation, spectral, and transfer function techniques) exhibited irremediable methodological limitations preventing the assessment of the BRS decrease during propofol anesthesia; 2) Granger causality approach proved that the methodological caveats were linked to the decreased presence of bidirectional closed-loop HP-SAP interactions and to the increased incidence of the HP-SAP uncoupling; 3) our model-based closed-loop approach detected the significant BRS decrease during propofol anesthesia as a likely result of accounting for the influences of mechanical ventilation and causal HP-SAP interactions; and 4) the model-based closed-loop approach found also a diminished gain of the relation from HP to SAP linked to vasodilatation and reduced ventricular contractility during propofol anesthesia. The proposed model-based causal closed-loop approach is more effective than traditional approaches in monitoring cardiovascular control during propofol anesthesia and indicates an overall depression of the HP-SAP closed-loop regulation.
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Cardiopulmonary function is reduced in adults born very preterm, but it is unknown if this results in reduced pulmonary gas exchange efficiency during exercise and, consequently, leads to reduced aerobic capacity in subjects with and without bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). We hypothesized that an excessively large alveolar to arterial oxygen difference (AaDO2) and resulting exercise-induced arterial hypoxemia (EIAH) would contribute to reduced aerobic fitness in adults born very preterm with and without BPD. Measurements of pulmonary function, lung volumes and diffusion capacity for carbon monoxide (DLco) were made at rest. ⋯ Arterial O2 content was not significantly different between the groups preexercise or during exercise. However, peak power output was decreased in BPD and PRE subjects compared with CONT. We conclude that EIAH in adult subjects born very preterm with and without BPD does not likely contribute to the reduction in aerobic exercise capacity observed in these subjects.
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Gravitational forces, including hypergravity or microgravity, induce plasticity of vestibular-related functions. These functions are not easily reversed if exposure to the gravitational forces occurs during vestibular development. In the present study, we hypothesized that vestibular-related stress responses might be suppressed in rats exposed to hypergravity during the vestibular development period. ⋯ Arginine vasopressin and Fos expression levels in the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus were also significantly lower in BW-HG and vestibular lesion rats than in AW-HG and 1-G rats. By contrast, there was no difference in the electrical foot shock-induced increase in plasma corticosterone among the experimental groups, suggesting that the nonvestibular-related stress response was not suppressed by exposure to 2 g during preweaning. These results indicated that exposure to hypergravity during preweaning specifically suppressed the vestibular-related stress response, and this suppression did not recover after 4 wk at 1 g.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Intravenous adenosine activates diffuse nociceptive inhibitory controls in humans.
Experimentally induced pain can be attenuated by concomitant heterotopic nociceptive stimuli (counterirritation). Animal data indicate that this stems from supraspinal "diffuse noxious inhibitory controls" (DNICs) triggered by C and Aδ fibers. In humans, only noxious stimuli induce counterirritation. ⋯ The temporal dynamics of adenosine-induced dyspnea and RIII inhibition differed (immediate onset followed by a slow decrease for dyspnea, slower onset for RIII inhibition). Intravenous adenosine in normal humans induces counterirritation, fueling the notion that C-fiber stimulation trigger DNICs in humans. The temporal dissociation between adenosine-induced dyspnea and RIII inhibition suggests that C fibers other than pulmonary ones might be involved.