Cardiovascular system electrocardiograms

Special focus is given to the cardiovascular system. For the core battery of the cardiovascular system according to S7A blood pressure, heart rate and electrocardiogram should be assessed, but also in vivo, in vitro and/or ex vivo evaluations, including methods for repolarization and conductance abnormalities should be considered. 

Electrocardiograms and Cardiovascular Measurements. The availability of excellent GLP-validated telemetry systems has led to recent increases in the number of cardiovasular safety pharmacology studies conducted in primates. In addition, telemetry is now sometimes included as a design element in standard safety studies. Because of the ability to collect large amounts of high quality data over an extended time, total numbers of animals can often be reduced by appropriate application of... 

Medical history and a physical examination should be completed for every patient. Given the physiological changes during ECT, the physical examination should include assessment of the airway, cardiovascular, pulmonary, and central nervous systems. Eaboratory examinations may include a blood count, liver and thyroid function tests, urine analysis, and electrocardiogram (EKG). Other investigations such as skeletal X-ray, completed tomographic (CT) scan of the... 

Propoxyphene is an agonist of opioid fi receptors. It is this opioid effect that is responsible for the central nervous system and respiratory depression seen in overdose. Both propoxyphene and norpropoxyphene are potent blockers of myocardial sodium channels, an effect identical to type lA antidysrhythmic agents. This myocardial sodium channel blockade may result in prolongation of the electrocardiogram QRS complex, arrhythmias, and cardiovascular depression seen in propoxyphene poisoning. 

Measurement of electrical activity in the heart, now known as the electrocardiogram (ECG), was introduced about 75 years ago by Willem Einthoven. The ECG is simple to perform and is the most frequently used, least invasive, and cheapest cardiovascular test. ° It remains the procedure of first choice for evaluation of chest pain, dizziness, or syncope. In its simplest interpretation, the ECG characterizes rhythms and conduction abnormalities. However, the ECG also provides, by inference, information about the anatomy and structures of the heart, pathophysiologic changes, and hemodynamics of the CVD system. ECG abnormalities are often the earliest sign of adverse drug effects, ischemia, and electolyte abnormalities. 

Effects of the compound on specific organ systems, i.e., cardiovascular, respiratory, and nervous, are evaluated. These are referred to as safety pharmacology studies and are intended to investigate the potential undesirable pharmacodynamic effects of a substance on physiological functions in relation to exposure. Parameters that are evaluated include blood pressure, heart rate, electrocardiogram, motor activity, behavioral changes, coordination, sensory/motor reflex responses, respiratory rate and depth (6,7). 

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