BACKGROUND A key element in enhanced postoperative recovery is early mobilization which, however, may be hindered by orthostatic intolerance, that is, an inability to sit or stand because of symptoms of cerebral hypoperfusion as intolerable dizziness, nausea and vomiting, feeling of heat, or blurred vision. We assessed orthostatic tolerance in relation to the postural cardiovascular responses b...

Anorexia nervosa (AN) is associated with gut and non-gut symptoms e.g. orthostatic intolerance and fatigue syndromes. Elsewhere, joint hypermobility has been found in non-anorexic populations who have gut symptoms, orthostatic intolerance or fatigue syndromes. We therefore postulated that joint hypermobility may be a feature of AN.Patients from an inpatient Eating Disorders Unit and their first...

Patients with autonomic failure have disabling orthostatic hypotension because of impaired sympathetic activity. Norepinephrine transporter blockade with atomoxetine raises blood pressure in autonomic failure by increasing synaptic norepinephrine concentrations in postganglionic sympathetic neurons. This effect requires tonic release of norepinephrine, which is decreased in patients with low sy...

A utonomic neuropathy occurs in over 50% of chronic dialysis patients (1). Since the autonomic nervous system innervates almost every organ of the body, the clinical features may be diverse and widespread. Most of the nerve fibers in the autonomic nervous system are small myelinated or unmyelinated fibers that are affected early in diabetes mellitus (2). Neurogenic orthostatic hypotension is th...

Orthostatic hypotension is associated with cardiovascular disease and mortality, but little is known of its association with incident chronic kidney disease. We evaluated this association in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study. Orthostatic hypotension was defined as a decrease in systolic blood pressure 20 mm Hg or a decrease in diastolic blood pressure 10 mm Hg within 2 minutes of st...

There are two possible mechanisms contributing to the excessive fall of stroke volume (and its contribution to orthostatic intolerance) in the upright position after bed rest or spaceflight: reduced cardiac filling due to hypovolemia and/or a less distensible heart due to cardiac atrophy. We hypothesized that preservation of cardiac mechanical function by exercise training, plus normalization o...

BACKGROUND Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the most common cause of sudden cardiac death (SCD) in young adults, mainly ascribed to ventricular tachycardia (VT). Assuming that VT is the major cause of (pre-) syncope in HCM patients, its occurrence is essential for SCD risk stratification and primarily preventive ICD-implantation. However, evidence of VT during syncope is often missing. As t...

We hypothesized that orthostatic tolerance is higher in young, healthy black compared with white women. To determine orthostatic tolerance, 22 women (11 black and 11 white) underwent graded lower body negative pressure to presyncope. We measured blood pressure, heart rate, and R-R interval (ECG) continuously at baseline and through all of the levels of lower body negative pressure. Blood sample...

We hypothesized that orthostatic tolerance is higher in young, healthy black compared with white women. To determine orthostatic tolerance, 22 women (11 black and 11 white) underwent graded lower body negative pressure to presyncope. We measured blood pressure, heart rate, and R-R interval (ECG) continuously at baseline and through all of the levels of lower body negative pressure. Blood sample...

There have been reports on the use of octreotide in patients with orthostatic hypotension, postural tachycardia syndrome, and orthostatic syncope. However, there are little if any data on the use of octreotide in patients who have failed multiple other medications. This study was a retrospective chart analysis and was approved by our Institutional Review Board. A total of 12 patients were ident...