Authors:

Molly Dye

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About Paper:

Autonomic dysreflexia (AD) is a condition which may arise after spinal cord injury (SCI) which involves the dysregulation of the autonomic nervous system, leading to episodic hypertension. A noxious stimulus, usually urological, may result in the overreaction of the sympathetic nervous system, raising blood pressure until the stimulus is removed. Skin sympathetic nerve activity (SKNA) is a method used to measure sympathetic nerve activity. SKNA bursting refers to segments in SKNA data which correspond to increased sympathetic nerve activity. We found there is an increase in P wave height, decrease in QRS width and increase in SKNA bursting during AD. The purpose of this study is to test the hypothesis that increased P wave height and decreased QRS width are also associated with increased SKNA bursting. To mimic the onset of AD in humans, Sprague Dawley rats underwent T2/3 high thoracic spinal cord injury surgery to make rodent models susceptible to AD. Radio telemetry devices were implanted in rats to record blood pressure, heart rate, and electrocardiogram (ECG) parameters. Colorectal distension (CRD) was performed to elicit AD, causing at least a 15 mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure. Non-invasive surface electrodes were used to measure SKNA. Integrated SKNA data will be analyzed with a dual threshold algorithm to mark bursting. An unpaired t-test will be used to compare ECG data during SKNA bursting and non-bursting segments.

Source:

Purdue University / 2023

Topics:

No topics listed

Co-authors:

Molly Dye