Cardiac arrhythmias accompanying acute compression of the spinal cord.

This study was undertaken to determine the cardiovascular response to compression of the spinal cord and to determine the autonomic mechanisms involved. The electrocardiogram and arterial blood pressure were recorded in anesthetized monkeys during inflation of a balloon catheter in the epidural space of the mid-thoracic region. Acute spinal cord compression resulted in a wide variety of severe cardiac arrhythmias and acute hypertension. The arrhythmias were found to result from hyperactivity of both the sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions of the autonomic nervous system.