Effect of nitrogen narcosis on cortical and subcortical evoked responses in the cat

Four cats were chronically implanted with gross, monopolar electrodes in the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN), pretectum-superior colliculus (P-SC), primary visual cortex (VI), and secondary visual cortex (VII). Following recovery and preliminary testing, the animals were dived in a dry hyperbaric chamber to the sea water equivalent of 103 m (i.e. 340 ft.) where visual evoked responses were recorded. No decrements in the amplitude of the visual evoked response were found at the LGN, but significant decreases did occur at the other three sites. These data suggested: 1) that the effects of nitrogen narcosis on the visual system are primarily central, and not simply peripheral in nature; 2) that these effects are not limited to the visual cortical mantle; and 3) that the narcosis apparently influences structures involving different anatomical levels of the brain which presumably mediate various types of visual processes. The findings were discussed as they relate to current ideas concerning the underlying neurological causes and behavioral effects of nitrogen narcosis.