Intrinsic heart rate on exercise and the measurement of beta-adrenoceptor blockade

Methods of expressing the effects of beta-adrenoceptor blocking drugs on exercise heart rate have been evaluated using a standardised exercise test. In six normal subjects given atropine (0.04 mg/kg) on two separate occasions, the mean +/- s.e. mean exercise heart rate rose by 10.3 +/- 1.8 beats/min and by 11.0 +/- 1.6 beats/min respectively. This increase was designated the 'vagal effect and was not significantly different in the two studies. After atropinsation, propranolol (0.2 mg/kg) reduced mean +/- s.e. mean exercise heart rate by 45.3 +/- 2.6 beats/min and 0.4 mg/kg by 50.8 +/- 4.5 beats/min. This mean sympathetic blockade was not altered significantly by increasing the dose of propranolol but, in four of the six subjects, the larger dose produced an increased effect of 4, 6, 12 and 16 beats/min, suggesting that maximum sympathetic blockade may not have been produced by 0.2 mg/kg. Knowledge of the vagal effect in each subject with standardised exercise enabled prediction to be made of the exercise heart rate after propranolol (0.4 mg/kg) without previous atropinisation. Propranolol (0.4 mg/kg) was then given intravenously to each subject and the actual exercise heart rate measured. There was no significant difference between the predicted and observed exercise heart rates. Propranolol (0.6 mg/kg) without atropine was then given to the four subjects who had shown increased effect with (0.4 mg/kg) and the sympathetic blockade was measured. In one subject, a further increase in sympathetic blockade of 10 beats/min was found. The intrinsic heart rate at rest and on exercise was measured for propranolol (0.2 and 0.4 mg/kg) and, for propranolol (0.6 mg/kg), the intrinsic heart rate on exercise was calculated. At rest, although no significant difference was found between the two dose levels, three subjects did not appear to have maximum autonomic blockade at 0.2 mg/kg. Similarly, several subjects had lower intrinsic heart rates on exercise after 0.4 or 0.6 mg/kg than after 0.2 mg/kg. The intrinsic heart rate on exercise was significantly greater than that obtained at rest. Using the maximum sympathetic blockade obtained in each subject as the sympathetic component of exercise, the effects of increasing oral doses of practolol on exercise heart were measured as percentage blockade of sympathetic effect and this was compared with other conventional methods of measuring beta-adrenoceptor blockade. It was found that percentage blockade of sympathetic effect correlated most closely with both percentage and absolute reduction of exercise heart rate. Correlations with exercise heart rate after drug and percentage inhibition of tachycardia, whilst also significant, did not appear as good. When the effects of practolol were expressed in terms of the potential blockade, a plateau occurred between 70 and 80% of 'maximum' sympathetic blockade. The failure to achieve higher levels with practolol may be the result of its partial agonist or intrinsic sympathomimetic activity.