Electrophysiological studies of after-depolarizations and arrhythmias in the heart in vivo

CsCl triggered activities in cat heart in vivo were studied by using floating microelectrode and contact electrode to record transmembrane and monophasic action potentials (TAP and MAP). Ten seconds after CsCl (0.5 m mol/kg, i.v.), early after depolarization (EAD) appeared in the middle-later period of phase 3 in both TAP and MAP. Thirty seconds after CsCl, the amplitude of TAP-EAD was 25.6 +/- 9.3 mV and that of MAP-EAD was 3.4 +/- 1.3 mV. The potential changes of the EADs could be divided into three kinds, i.e. the "tail", the "plateau" and "peak" types. Delayed after depolarization (DADs) could also be induced by CsCl in the phase 4 of the TAP and MAP in two cats. The amplitudes of TAP-DAD and MAP-DAD were 13.0 +/- 5.3 mV and 3.3 +/- 0.6 mV respectively. The types of the afterdepolarizations in MAP were very similar to those in TAP. The ventricular extrasystole and/or tachycardias could be induced by repeated injections of CsCl. According to the occurrence of after depolarization (AD) and the relationship between the coupling interval of the AD and that of the ventricular beat, two kinds of generation of arrhythmias were suggested, i.e. one triggered by AD of the myocardium under the electrode and the other induced by AD originating from the other sites of the myocardium.