Stimulation of ventilation in emphysema by passively induced body motion

¹ Institute for Cardio Pulmonary Diseases, Scripps Clinic and Research Foundation, La Jolla, California

The ventilatory stimulation arising from two different forms of passively induced body motion was chosen for study of 14 male emphysematous subjects with hypercapnia and impaired ventilatory response to carbon dioxide. Nine normal males served as controls. The object of the study was to determine whether the stimulus to ventilation from passive body motion was intact in diseased subjects and whether it could serve as a therapeutic tool by bringing about a reduction in blood carbon dioxide. The results revealed that the stimulus to ventilation was mild and comparable in both groups but was associated with two to three times more oxygen per extra liter of minute ventilation in the diseased subjects. There were no significant changes in the arterial blood gases. It was concluded that the stimulus to ventilation from passive body motion arises from weak muscle action and has no therapeutic application in emphysematous subjects as a means of lowering the Pa_COCO2.

Note:
(With the Technical Assistance of Mabel Pearson, Roy Engstrom, Christa McReynolds, and Carol Kennedy)