Reduction by carbachol of ventricular conduction impairments induced by various class I antiarrhythmic drugs in anesthetized dogs

: A common property of all Class I antiarrhythmic agents is the inhibition of the fast inward current INa. Consequently, ventricular conduction velocities are impaired and reentrant phenomena are counteracted. Unfortunately, these conductive pathway disturbances may also induce proarrhythmic effects and reduce cardiac contractility. Recent evidence indicates that a cholinergic agonist, carbachol, is able to correct in vitro both the duration of the action potential and the partial depolarization induced by lidocaine and quinidine in rabbit atria. In the present study, we demonstrated that i.v. carbachol is also a powerful agent in vivo for correcting conductive disturbances previously induced by four different Class I antiarrhythmic agents. The electrophysiological and hemodynamic parameters of ten groups of atropinized-anesthetized dogs, including six animals per group, were investigated. QRS duration, HV and V-St intervals were selected as in vivo indexes of ventricular conduction. Quinidine, procainamide, cibenzoline and flecainide were selected as representative agents of Class Ia and Ic antiarrhythmic drugs. In all treated groups, carbachol (1 mg/kg) was able to correct the indexes of ventricular conduction previously impaired by the antiarrhythmic drug used.