Heart failure as an autonomic nervous system dysfunction

The autonomic nervous system and heart failure.

The pathophysiology of heart failure (HF) is characterized by hemodynamic abnormalities that result in neurohormonal activation and autonomic imbalance with increase in sympathetic activity and withdrawal of vagal activity. Alterations in receptor activation from this autonomic imbalance may have profound effects on cardiac function and structure. Inhibition of the sympathetic drive to the hear...

Autonomic Nervous System Dysfunction in Parkinson's Disease.

Autonomic nervous system (ANS) dysfunction is common in Parkinson's disease (PD), affects 70% to 80% of patients, and causes significant morbidity and discomfort. Autonomic nervous system dysfunction symptoms in PD include sexual dysfunction, swallowing and gastrointestinal disorders, bowel and bladder abnormalities, sleep disturbances, and derangements of cardiovascular regulation, particularl...

ATP as an excitatory cotransmitter in the autonomic nervous system

The role of adenosine 5'-triphosphate (ATP) as a major intracellular energy source is wellestablished. In addition, ATP and related nucleotides have widespread extracellular actions via the ionotropic P2X receptors (ligand-gated cation channels) and metabotropic P2Y receptors (G protein-coupled receptors). Numerous experimental techniques, including myography, electrophysiology and biochemical ...

Erectile dysfunction and heart rate recovery. Is it autonomic nervous system?

Autonomic Dysfunction in Heart Failure and Renal Disease

In the methods paper presented by Reulecke et al. (2012), autonomic function is examined in healthy preterm neonates, applying HRV to cardiorespiratory data using non-linear methods. Reference HRV data is currently only available for adults (Taskforce, 1996), but through a complex series of analyses, Reulecke et al. (2012) show that while the relationship between heart rate and respiration in p...