Cardiac function in the chronically volume-overloaded canine heart

SummaryIn the chronically volume-overloaded canine heart due to AV-block evaluations of cardiac function were performed during the development of hypertrophy and at stable hypertrophy. In an early stage (1 and 2 weeks of AV-block) when no or only a slight increase of cardiac muscle occurred, contractility measured from dP/dtmax at comparable load is elevated, while later (10 weeks of AV-block) when stable hypertrophy is present, contractility becomes again normal. In the hypertrophied heart a non-depressed cardiac performance and contractility and functional reserve was established from in-situ experiments and from evaluations in the isolated heart.