Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0020440 (hypercapnia)
 7,939 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Multifocal atrial tachycardia (MAT) is a difficult arrhythmia to treat. Pharmacologic treatment is generally disappointing, and successful conversion in a predictable manner is uncommon. To assess the efficacy of metoprolol, a relatively selective beta 1-adrenergic blocking agent, we administered this agent to 11 patients (aged 71.8 +/- 8.3 yr). All patients had serious pulmonary disease. Hypoxia, hypercarbia, acidosis, and electrolyte abnormalities were corrected before the study. Nine patients were receiving theophylline derivatives and six digoxin. Serum levels for both drugs were in the therapeutic range. Four patients had received verapamil without control of MAT. Mean atrial rate before administration of metoprolol was 142.3 +/- 17.2 beat/min and mean ventricular rate was 131.4 +/- 24.3 beat/min. One to 3 h after metoprolol (25 or 50 mg orally), all patients were restored to sinus rhythm, with a mean ventricular rate of 86.9 +/- 6.8 beat/min (p less than .01). Six patients had 3 to 6 premature atrial contractions per minute. No adverse effects were noted, and arterial blood gases before and after therapy were comparable. Five patients expired from their underlying disease and four were continued on metoprolol to maintain sinus rhythm. Metoprolol is effective in the acute and chronic treatment of MAT and may be given to patients with MAT and respiratory failure without serious adverse effects.
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PMID:Metoprolol in the treatment of multifocal atrial tachycardia. 356 27

Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), especially during acute exacerbations of their disease, show a greater incidence of cardiac arrhythmias than healthy subjects of the same age. The type of arrhythmias found may be supraventricular (premature atrial beats, paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia, multifocal atrial tachycardia, atrial flutter, atrial fibrillation) or ventricular (premature ventricular beats, sustained ventricular tachycardia, torsades de pointes, ventricular fibrillation) that may lead to sudden cardiac death. The pathogenesis of arrhythmias is complex and many factors may be involved such as hypoxemia, hypercapnia, respiratory acidosis, metabolic and respiratory alchalosis, hypokalemia, concomitant ischemic heart disease, chronic cor pulmonale, left ventricular diastolic dysfunction. Remarkable attention has been drawn to the possible arrhythmogenic effect of drugs such as theophylline, beta-adrenergic stimulants and digitalis which are commonly used in the therapy of COPD. Both of the main classes of bronchodilators (methylxanthynes and beta-adrenergic agonists), even when used together, apparently do not increase the incidence of dangerous cardiac arrhythmias. However, these drugs should be used with caution in the elderly, in patients with preexisting cardiac arrhythmias, with heart disease or with reduced hepatic function. In these cases Holter monitoring, repeated measurements of plasma drugs concentration and prompt hospitalization of high risk patients in Intensive Care Unit may be needed.
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PMID:[Evaluation of hyperkinetic cardiac arrhythmia in chronic obstructive bronchopneumopathy]. 944 64