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Vagus nerve stimulation reduces ventricular arrhythmias and increases ventricular electrical stability
Author(s) -
NasiEr Buajieerguli,
Wenhui Zhang,
HuaXin Sun,
Xianhui Zhou,
Yaodong Li,
Yanmei Lu,
Hongli Wang,
TuErHong ZuKela,
Qina Zhou,
BaoPeng Tang
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
pacing and clinical electrophysiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.686
H-Index - 101
eISSN - 1540-8159
pISSN - 0147-8389
DOI - 10.1111/pace.13585
Subject(s) - medicine , ventricular fibrillation , vagus nerve stimulation , cardiology , ventricular tachycardia , anesthesia , myocardial infarction , vagus nerve , stimulation
Background Transcutaneous stimulation of the auricular branch of the vagus nerve (AB‐VNS) is a potentially noninvasive, inexpensive, and safe approach for vagus nerve stimulation that suppresses the induction and duration of atrial fibrillation and reduces sympathetic nerve outflow in healthy humans. Researchers have not determined whether AB‐VNS affects ventricular arrhythmias. Objective To evaluate the antiarrhythmic effects of noninvasive AB‐VNS on ventricular arrhythmias induced by myocardial infarction (MI). Methods and Results Twelve beagle dogs were randomly divided into the following two groups: a AB‐VNS group (coronary artery occlusion and noninvasive AB‐VNS) and a control group (coronary artery occlusion but without AB‐VNS). We examined spontaneous ventricular arrhythmias, ventricular electrophysiological properties, and cardiac function in conscious dogs. Morphology, fibrosis, and ultrastructure s were also assessed. AB‐VNS significantly reduced the occurrence of spontaneous ventricular arrhythmias, including isolated premature ventricular complexes, ventricular couplets, ventricular bigeminy, ventricular trigeminy, and ventricular tachycardia. AB‐VNS effectively increased ventricular electrical stability, including significantly prolonged ventricular effective refractory periods, decreased the dispersion of effective refractory period, enhanced the ventricular fibrillation threshold, and decreased the maximum slope of the monophasic action potential duration restitution curve. AB‐VNS treatments alleviate ventricular interstitial fibrosis after MI. However, cardiac function was not improved, and MI‐induced ultrastructural changes in the myocardium were not reversed by 4 weeks of AB‐VNS. In addition, AB‐VNS for 4 weeks resulted in mild mitochondrial swelling within the neuronal axons of the auricular vagus fiber. Conclusions Noninvasive AB‐VNS reduces the occurrence of spontaneous ventricular arrhythmias in conscious dogs with MI. AB‐VNS increases ventricular electrical stability and alleviates ventricular interstitial fibrosis induced by MI.