Does ventricular pacing alter haemodynamic parameters compared to atrial pacing?
Ventricular pacing is associated with higher left atrial pressures for a given cardiac output compared to atrial pacing, highlighting the haemodynamic importance of atrioventricular synchrony.
In the course of earlier investigations it was noted that when the heart was paced by ventricular stimulation, mean left atrial pressure was higher for any given cardiac output, aortic pressure, and stroke work than when the atrium was paced at the same rate. Although the changes observed in those initial observations were not always striking, it was felt desirable to clarify the mechanisms by which they took place and to find what influenced their magnitude. Accordingly, a more systematic investigation was undertaken.
Gilmore et al. (Wed,) studied this question.