Drugs Used In Cardiac Arrhythmias Flashcards
What cells/fibers are involved in creating a fast action potential?
Ventricular contractile cardiomyocytes
Atrial cardiomyocytes
Purkinje fibers
What cells are involved in creating a slow (pacemaker) action potential?
SA node cells
AV node cells
What ions, and in which direction, flux across the cell membrane in developing a fast action potential in the cardiac muscle? What do they open in response to (increase in voltage/membrane potential or collapse of membrane potential)?
Inward flux of Na+: increase in voltage
Inward flux of Ca++: increase in voltage
Outward flux of K+: collapse of voltage
How does a Phase 4 AP occur? What triggers its influx of ions?
There is Funny (If) “poorly-selective” ionic influx of Na+ and K+ that slowly approaches threshold potential. This influx is activated by hyperpolarization.
As membrane potential approaches the threshold potential, slow Ca++ influx (via T-type) occurs to draw even closer to threshold.
What is Phase 0 of the pacemaker AP?
“Upstroke of AP”
Ca++ influx through the relatively slow L-type (long-acting) Ca++ channels.
What is Phase 3 of the pacemaker AP?
Repolarization via inactivation of Ca++ channels due to increased K+ efflux.
What are 3 factors of the pacemaker AP that determines the firing rate of the heart?
- Rate of spontaneous depolarization in Phase 4: decreased slope would lead to a slower firing rate, as more time is needed to reach threshold.
- Threshold potential.
- Resting potential: if potential is less negative, less time is needed to reach threshold, so firing rate would increase.
What is the overall MOA of Class 1 drugs?
Block Na+ channels
1A drugs
Quinidine
Procainamide
Disopyramide
1B drugs
Lidocaine
Mexiletine
1C drugs
Flecainide
Propafenone
What is the general MOA for Class 2?
Beta-blockers
Class 2 drugs
Esmolol
Propranolol
What is the MOA for Class 3 drugs?
Block K+ channels
Class 3 drugs
Amiodarone
Sotalol
Dofetilide
Ibutilide
What is the MOA for Class 4 drugs?
Cardioactive Ca++ channel blockers
Class 4 drugs
Verapamil
Diltiazem
What is unique about Sotalol?
It is classified as a Class 3 drug because it has K+ channel-blocking activity, but also has some beta-blocking (Class 2) activity.
Which classes of anti-arrhythmic drugs interact w/ a G protein, rather than an ion channel directly?
Class 2 - beta-blockers
Misc. agents (Adenosine)
Na+ channels have distinct resting states, activated states and inactivated states. What happens in each state?
Resting - channel is closed but ready to generate an AP.
Activated - depolarization to the threshold opens m-gates and greatly increases Na+ permeability.
Inactivated state - h-gates are closed, inward Na+ influx is inhibited and the channel is not available for re-activation. It is the “refractory period”.
What is “state-dependent block”?
Most therapeutically useful drugs block the Na+ channels in which states?
The concept that drugs may have different affinities of the ion channel protein in certain states of the resting/activated/inactivated cycle of the Na+ channel.
They block the activated or inactivated states, with little affinity toward the resting state.