Abstract
ABSTRACT. Previous studies have suggested that the atriovenous nodal functional refractory period in the neonate is equal to or shorter than that of the ventricle, providing little or no protection to the ventricle against rapid atrial rates and allowing closely coupled atrial beats to fall within the ventricular vulnerable period. We evaluated atriovenous node function in 21 mongrel neonatal puppies, 3-15 days old, and 15 adult dogs utilizing intracardiac His bundle recording and stimulation techniques. The mean atriovenous nodal functional refractory period (173.1 ± 20.0 ms) exceeded both the ventricular effective refractory period (139.5 ± 14.3) and ventricular functional refractory period (163.3 ± 14.5) in the neonates. Furthermore, the atriovenous node was the site of limiting antegrade conduction in all neonates. No ventricular arrhythmias were induced by atrial extrastimulation in any of the neonates. The site of conduction delay during atrial extrastimulation was confined to the atriovenous node in 15/16 neonates (94%) while 1/16 (6%) had combined nodal and infranodal delay. The neonates developed Wenckebach, at significantly faster heart rates than the adults, but both groups developed Wenckebach at approximately twice the resting heart rate. Retrograde conduction was a consistent finding in the neonates. However, antegrade Wenckebach occurred at a significantly faster heart rate than retrograde Wenckebach suggesting different functional properties. Our data suggest that in the neonatal canine, the atriovenous node functional refractory period is longer than both the ventricular effective refractory period and ventricular functional refractory period. Furthermore, the degree of protection offered by the neonatal atriovenous node to the ventricle appears to be comparable to that of the adult.
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Mccormack, J., Gelband, H., Xu, H. et al. Atriovenous Nodal Function in the Immature Canine Heart. Pediatr Res 22, 616–620 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198711000-00027
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198711000-00027