Cardiac sensitization induced by phenobarbitone and prolonged by CS2

The arrhythmogenic effect of 8 microgram/kg noradrenaline given i.v. was increased in male rats pretreated 1-2 days earlier with phenobarbitone and starved from the time of the first phenobarbitone injection (80 mg/kg followed by 50 mg/kg 6 h later). Daily exposure to 4.0 mg/l CS2 (first exposure 24 h after the first phenobarbitone injection) for 4 h prevented the decline in susceptibility on the 3rd and 4th days after phenobarbitone, when the reaction of unexposed rats to noradrenaline returned to normal.