The effects of pulmonary circulation pulsatility on the impedance cardiogram.

To study the effects of pulmonary blood flow on the impedance cardiogram, the pattern of pulmonary blood flow was alternated from pulsatile to non pulsatile, or the reverse, using our extracorporeal bypass-method on anaesthetized dogs. The thoracic impedance cardiogram was recorded from band electrodes placed around the neck and upper abdomen. During nonpulsatile pulmonary blood flow, the height of the diastolic phase of the delta Z wave was lower than that during pulsatile pulmonary blood flow. The area under the impedance curve decreased during nonpulsatile pulmonary blood flow. This appeared to be more obvious as the pulmonary arterial flow was reduced. The results suggest that the pulmonary blood flow might have substantial effects on the impedance cardiogram.