Physical exercise and binding of digoxin to skeletal muscle--effect of muscle activation frequency

Ten healthy subjects who had ingested 0.5 mg digoxin daily for at least 10 days, performed a 1-hour bicycle exercise test on two occasions, 24 h after the latest dose, with the same work load but at two different pedalling rates, 40 and 80 rpm. During exercise the mean digoxin concentration in the thigh muscle increased by 8% at 40 rpm (n.s.) and by 29% at 80 rpm (p less than 0.01). The serum digoxin concentration decreased by 39% at both pedalling rates (p less than 0.001). The results suggest that the increase in skeletal muscle digoxin concentration during exercise is related to the neuromuscular activation frequency. The digoxin concentration in erythrocytes was measured in 16 healthy subjects before and 1 minute after a 1-hour bicycle exercise test. The erythrocyte digoxin concentration decreased by 12% (p less than 0.01) during the exercise indicating that the increased uptake of digoxin in skeletal muscle during exercise influences the digoxin concentration in other tissues.