Temperature effect on the human dive response in relation to cold water near-drowning

1984 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 202-206 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. S. Hayward ◽  
C. Hay ◽  
B. R. Matthews ◽  
C. H. Overweel ◽  
D. D. Radford
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Water Temperature ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Breath Holding ◽  
Breath Hold ◽  
Cold Stimulation ◽  
Near Drowning ◽  
Voluntary Hyperventilation ◽  
Dive Response ◽  
Breath Hold Duration

To facilitate analysis of mechanisms involved in cold water near-drowning, maximum breath-hold duration (BHD) and diving bradycardia were measured in 160 humans who were submerged in water temperatures from 0 to 35 degrees C at 5 degrees C intervals. For sudden submersion BHD was dependent on water temperature (Tw) according to the equation BHD = 15.01 + 0.92Tw. In cold water (0–15 degrees C), BHD was greatly reduced, being 25–50% of the presubmersion duration. BHD after brief habituation to water temperature and mild, voluntary hyperventilation was more than double that of sudden submersion and was also dependent on water temperature according to the equation BHD = 38.90 + 1.70Tw. Minimum heart rate during both types of submersions (diving bradycardia) was independent of water temperature. The results are pertinent to accidental submersion in cold water and show that decreased breath-holding capacity caused by peripheral cold stimulation reduces the effectiveness of the dive response and facilitates drowning. These findings do not support the postulate that the dive response has an important role in the enhanced resuscitatibility associated with cold water near-drowning, thereby shifting emphasis to hypothermia as the mechanism for this phenomenon.

Dive response of children in relation to cold-water near-drowning

1987 ◽  
Vol 63 (2) ◽  
pp. 665-668 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. A. Ramey ◽  
D. N. Ramey ◽  
J. S. Hayward
Keyword(s):  
Water Temperature ◽  
Significant Contribution ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Breath Hold ◽  
Age Dependency ◽  
Near Drowning ◽  
Experimental Findings ◽  
Dive Response ◽  
Breath Hold Duration

The strength of the dive response, as judged by the combination of breath-hold duration (BHD) and bradycardia, was compared in 87 children (4–13 yr old) and 68 adults (20–68 yr old) during simulated dives in 29 degrees C water. Mean BHD in children (16.1 s) was only 37.4% (P less than 0.001) of adult BHD (43.0 s). Within children, BHD was significantly (P less than 0.001) dependent on age (A in yr) according to the regression BHD = -1.46 + 2.27A. No age dependency of BHD occurred in adults. Due to the low BHD of children, only 14/87 (16.1%) were able to breath hold for the 25 s necessary to develop full diving bradycardia. For these 14 children, their bradycardia (36.1% reduction) was insignificantly different (P greater than 0.50) from that of adults (36.4%). These experimental findings demonstrate that the dive response of children is extremely weak, due mainly to their very low BHD. Since lower water temperature would probably accentuate the shortness of BHD (according to previous findings for adults), it is concluded that the dive response is unlikely to make a significant contribution to the prolonged resuscitatibility of children who are victims of cold-water near-drowning.

Roles of stress and adaptation in the elicitation of face-immersion bradycardia

1983 ◽  
Vol 54 (3) ◽  
pp. 661-665 ◽  
Author(s):  
B. H. Natelson ◽  
C. A. Nary ◽  
G. A. Curtis ◽  
D. Creighton
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Water Temperature ◽  
Perceived Stress ◽  
Physiological Response ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
The Other ◽  
Breath Holding ◽  
Healthy Human ◽  
Human Volunteers ◽  
Face Immersion

Thirteen young healthy human volunteers immersed their faces in warm or cold water on one day while breathing through a snorkel and on another day while breath holding. The magnitude of the elicited bradycardia was most prominently due to water temperature, with apnea playing a less important role. Perceived stress could affect the magnitude of the response, but it was less important than the other variables. Thus statistically significant nonparametric correlations were found for the group but not for most individuals between a scoring technique that assessed perceived stress and heart rate. In contrast to animals, these data indicate that bradycardia may be reliably elicited in humans by face immersion in cold water and that stress is neither necessary nor sufficient to produce this phenomenon. Adaptation did not seem to play a role in the development of this physiological response.

Control of ventilation in elite synchronized swimmers

1987 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 1019-1024 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. L. Bjurstrom ◽  
R. B. Schoene
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Ventilatory Response ◽  
Minute Ventilation ◽  
Mean Value ◽  
Heart Rate Change ◽  
Breath Holding ◽  
Breath Hold ◽  
Lung Volumes ◽  
Co2 Partial Pressure ◽  
Control Of Ventilation

Synchronized swimmers perform strenuous underwater exercise during prolonged breath holds. To investigate the role of the control of ventilation and lung volumes in these athletes, we studied the 10 members of the National Synchronized Swim Team including an olympic gold medalist and 10 age-matched controls. We evaluated static pulmonary function, hypoxic and hypercapnic ventilatory drives, and normoxic and hyperoxic breath holding. Synchronized swimmers had an increased total lung capacity and vital capacity compared with controls (P less than 0.005). The hypoxic ventilatory response (expressed as the hyperbolic shape parameter A) was lower in the synchronized swimmers than controls with a mean value of 29.2 +/- 2.6 (SE) and 65.6 +/- 7.1, respectively (P less than 0.001). The hypercapnic ventilatory response [expressed as S, minute ventilation (1/min)/alveolar CO2 partial pressure (Torr)] was no different between synchronized swimmers and controls. Breath-hold duration during normoxia was greater in the synchronized swimmers, with a mean value of 108.6 +/- 4.8 (SE) vs. 68.03 +/- 8.1 s in the controls (P less than 0.001). No difference was seen in hyperoxic breath-hold times between groups. During breath holding synchronized swimmers demonstrated marked apneic bradycardia expressed as either absolute or heart rate change from basal heart rate as opposed to the controls, in whom heart rate increased during breath holds. Therefore the results show that elite synchronized swimmers have increased lung volumes, blunted hypoxic ventilatory responses, and a marked apneic bradycardia that may provide physiological characteristics that offer a competitive advantage for championship performance.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Heart rate responses to apneic underwater diving and to breath holding in man

1963 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 854-862 ◽  
Author(s):  
Albert B. Craig
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Venous Return ◽  
Intrathoracic Pressure ◽  
Breath Holding ◽  
Breath Hold ◽  
Physiological Mechanisms ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Compression Chamber

Bradycardia is a response to apneic diving which man has in common with many other species. Slowing of the heart rate during diving was observed in children as well as adults and was as prominent in poor swimmers as in those subjects who were familiar with the water. The response was independent of depth down to 27 m, but could not be produced by simulated dives in a compression chamber. Diving in water implies several maneuvers, some of which were investigated during breath holding. It was observed that the tachycardia produced by breath holding at different Valsalva pressures was proportional to the increase of intrathoracic pressure. At equal pressures the tachycardia was less when the subject was in water than when in air. Other maneuvers which increased venous return at the beginning of the breath hold produced a bradycardia during the apnea, and conversely when venous return was impaired there was a tachycardia. The hypothesis is presented that diving bradycardia in man might be explainable in terms of already known physiological mechanisms. swimming; submersion Submitted on February 27, 1963

The diving physiology of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). I. Balancing the demands of exercise for energy conservation at depth

1999 ◽  
Vol 202 (20) ◽  
pp. 2739-2748 ◽  
Author(s):  
T.M. Williams ◽  
J.E. Haun ◽  
W.A. Friedl
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Blood Lactate ◽  
Tursiops Truncatus ◽  
Marine Mammals ◽  
Bottlenose Dolphins ◽  
Lactate Concentration ◽  
Blood Lactate Concentration ◽  
Energetic Cost ◽  
Breath Holding ◽  
Breath Hold

During diving, marine mammals must rely on the efficient utilization of a limited oxygen reserve sequestered in the lungs, blood and muscles. To determine the effects of exercise and apnea on the use of these reserves, we examined the physiological responses of adult bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus) trained to breath-hold on the water surface or to dive to submerged targets at depths between 60 and 210 m. Changes in blood lactate levels, in partial pressures of oxygen and carbon dioxide and in heart rate were assessed while the dolphins performed sedentary breath-holds. The effects of exercise on breath-hold capacity were examined by measuring heart rate and post-dive respiration rate and blood lactate concentration for dolphins diving in Kaneohe Bay, Oahu, Hawaii. Ascent and descent rates, stroke frequency and swimming patterns were monitored during the dives. The results showed that lactate concentration was 1.1+/−0.1 mmol l(−1) at rest and increased non-linearly with the duration of the sedentary breath-hold or dive. Lactate concentration was consistently higher for the diving animals at all comparable periods of apnea. Breakpoints in plots of lactate concentration and blood gas levels against breath-hold duration (P(O2), P(CO2)) for sedentary breath-holding dolphins occurred between 200 and 240 s. In comparison, the calculated aerobic dive limit for adult dolphins was 268 s. Descent and ascent rates ranged from 1.5 to 2.5 m s(−1) during 210 m dives and were often outside the predicted range for swimming at low energetic cost. Rather than constant propulsion, diving dolphins used interrupted modes of swimming, with more than 75 % of the final ascent spent gliding. Physiological and behavioral measurements from this study indicate that superimposing swimming exercise on apnea was energetically costly for the diving dolphin but was circumvented in part by modifying the mode of swimming.

Human initial responses to immersion in cold water at three temperatures and after hyperventilation

1991 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 317-322 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. J. Tipton ◽  
D. A. Stubbs ◽  
D. H. Elliott
Keyword(s):  
Tidal Volume ◽  
Water Temperature ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Respiratory Drive ◽  
Voluntary Hyperventilation ◽  
Biochemical Alterations ◽  
Influence Of Water ◽  
Respiratory Responses

The present investigation was designed to examine the influence of water temperature and prior hyperventilation on some of the potentially hazardous responses evoked by immersion in cold water. Eight naked subjects performed headout immersions of 2-min duration into stirred water at 5, 10, and 15 degrees C and at 10 degrees C after 1 min of voluntary hyperventilation. Analysis of the respiratory and cardiac data collected during consecutive 10-s periods showed that, at the 0.18-m/s rate of immersion employed, differences between the variables recorded on immersion in water at 5 and 10 degrees C were due to the duration of the responses evoked rather than their magnitude during the first 20 s. The exception to this was the tidal volume of subjects, which was higher on immersion in water at 15 degrees C than at 5 or 10 degrees C. The results suggested that the respiratory drive evoked during the first seconds of immersion was more closely reflected in the rate rather than the depth of breathing at this time. Hyperventilation before immersion in water at 10 degrees C did not attenuate the respiratory responses seen on immersion. It is concluded that, during the first critical seconds of immersion, the initial responses evoked by immersion in water at 10 degrees C can represent as great a threat as those in water at 5 degrees C; also, in water at 10 degrees C, the respiratory component of this threat is not influenced by the biochemical alterations associated with prior hyperventilation.

Diving response and arterial oxygen saturation during apnea and exercise in breath-hold divers

2002 ◽  
Vol 93 (3) ◽  
pp. 882-886 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan P. A. Andersson ◽  
Mats H. Linér ◽  
Elisabeth Rünow ◽  
Erika K. A. Schagatay
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Heart Rate ◽  
Oxygen Saturation ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Arterial Oxygen Saturation ◽  
Cycle Ergometer ◽  
Arterial Oxygen ◽  
Breath Hold ◽  
Diving Response ◽  
Face Immersion

This study addressed the effects of apnea in air and apnea with face immersion in cold water (10°C) on the diving response and arterial oxygen saturation during dynamic exercise. Eight trained breath-hold divers performed steady-state exercise on a cycle ergometer at 100 W. During exercise, each subject performed 30-s apneas in air and 30-s apneas with face immersion. The heart rate and arterial oxygen saturation decreased and blood pressure increased during the apneas. Compared with apneas in air, apneas with face immersion augmented the heart rate reduction from 21 to 33% ( P < 0.001) and the blood pressure increase from 34 to 42% ( P < 0.05). The reduction in arterial oxygen saturation from eupneic control was 6.8% during apneas in air and 5.2% during apneas with face immersion ( P < 0.05). The results indicate that augmentation of the diving response slows down the depletion of the lung oxygen store, possibly associated with a larger reduction in peripheral venous oxygen stores and increased anaerobiosis. This mechanism delays the fall in alveolar and arterial Po 2 and, thereby, the development of hypoxia in vital organs. Accordingly, we conclude that the human diving response has an oxygen-conserving effect during exercise.

scholarly journals Effects of Cold Stimulation Induced Pain on Cardiopulmonary Parameters: A Gender Based Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-18
Author(s):  
R.K. Jha ◽  
S. Amatya
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Heart Rate ◽  
Respiratory Rate ◽  
Acute Pain ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Cold Pressor Test ◽  
Cold Pressor ◽  
Cold Stimulation ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Pressor Test

Background Cold pressor induced pain elicits sympathetic responses which can be monitored by measuring blood pressure, heart rate and respiratory rate after exposure to the cold stress. Objective This study was done to evaluate gender difference in acute pain induced by cold pressor test on blood pressure, heart rate and respiratory rate of healthy individuals. Method Our study was cross sectional study with the sample size of 40 including 20 male and 20 female undergraduates. Acute pain was induced by immersion of hand in cold water at 4°C. Changes in blood pressure, heart rate and respiratory rate were recorded by the digital sphygmomanometer and AD Instruments (Model: ML856, Serial: T26-4025) and analysis was done by Lab Chart 7 Pro v 7.3.3 respectively. Acute pain parameter like pain threshold was also recorded. Statistical analysis was done by using Paired “t” test and non-parametric test. Result The present study enrolled 40 participants, aged between 18 – 24 years, and body mass index from 15.78 – 36.06 kg/m2. The respiratory rate was increased in both males (17.30±3.19 to 19.0±3.21, P=0.01) and females (18.60±1.98 to 19.90±2.82, P= 0.01) however significant increase in heart rate was only found in females (77.80±8.07 to 80.70±7.80, P=0.03) after cold pressor test. The systolic as well as diastolic blood pressure did not increase significantly after cold pressor test. The pain thresholds ranged from 25.2 to 105.8 seconds (61.60±23.26, male Vs. 52.69±18.49, female, p = 0.188). Conclusion Our findings point towards autonomic adjustments suggesting more of sympathetic over activity immediately after cold pressor test.

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