The Autonomic Nervous System

The resting heart rate fluctuates over time because it is under control of the autonomic nervous system and the fluctuations are a result of the sympathetic and parasympathetic systems trying to balance each other out.

The heart serves an important purpose within the body, pumping blood throughout the circulatory system to supply all parts of the body with vital nutrients and molecules. It pumps oxygen and nutrient rich blood to be exchanged for carbon dioxide, which is then pumped to the lungs and eliminated from the body. The movement of blood throughout the body is due to the heart’s ability to push blood along the circulatory system at a steady, unfaltering rate. This rate, known as heart rate, is regulated and can be altered at a moment’s notice by signaling within the body and heart itself. In vertebrates, the autonomic nervous system controls and regulates heart rate. The autonomic nervous system is divided into two subunits, the sympathetic nervous system and parasympathetic nervous system. The parasympathetic nerve that innervates the heart is the vagus nerve. In this laboratory experiment, the regulation of heart rate was observed by studying a certain breed of turtle, the Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans). Both chemical and electric signaling can influence the components of the nervous

An untrained 22-year-old male human subject was chosen. A PT-104 pulse plethysmograph was wrapped around his dominant (right) index finger. Connected through a IXTA data acquisition unit, heart rate was monitored on LabScribe. The recordings were measured with ten seconds of leeway at the beginning and end to allow baseline pulse recovery. Digital marks labeled the time interval of the described action. First the subject’s heart rate was measured during a resting phase for twenty seconds. He was encouraged to relax and remain inactive in order to confirm an accurate baseline reading. For the apneic condition, the subject repeated this

Resting Heart Rate Norm Table & Results (male) (resting heart rate norm table , n.d.)

The hypothesis: If exercise increases, then blood pressure and HR will increase initially as a result of increased QC, and as time progresses the initial increase in blood pressure and HR will adjust to their normal resting values, was not supported by the results (p-value>0.05). The initial rise in blood pressure can be tied to the increased need of oxygen delivery to the contracting muscle cells. The increase in oxygen demand causes an increase in hyperemia to the skeletal muscles3. The increased blood flow increases blood pressure as a result of increased QC. QC is also influenced by a high level of sympathetic nervous innervation3. By increasing sympathetic tone there is an increase in SA node pacing, increased contractility, and increased irritability of foci. All of this results in an increase in SV and inevitably increases QC. With the heart pumping faster and harder, blood pressure increases.

I recorded and documented my heart rate before the test, at the end of the test, and during recovery. Recovery was done four to five minutes after the end of the test. Heart rate response is the maximum heart rate divided by the average maximum heart rate you should have based on your age. My studies showed that my heart rate was significantly high compared to that of a healthy person. My heartbeat ranged from 70-80 beats per minute, however, a healthier person has a normal resting heart rate that of closer to 40 beats per minute. There was a lower heart rate at rest. These charts are averages from studies conducted throughout a period of a week. My blood pressure compared to average normal person was way

Heart period variability (HPV) is a physiological process where the time interval between heart beats varies. It is measured by the variation in the beat-to-beat interval. Other terms used include: "cycle length variability", "RR variability" (where R is a point corresponding to the peak of the QRS complex of the ECG wave; and RR is the interval between successive peaks), and "heart rate variability". Methods used to detect beats include: ECG, blood pressure, and the pulse wave signal derived from a photoplethysmograph (PPG). ECG is considered superior because it provides a clear waveform, which makes it easier to exclude heartbeats not originating in the sino-atrial node. The term "NN" is used in place of RR to emphasize the fact that the processed beats are "normal" beats.

ECG is electric signal generated by the activity of the heart, and it plays critical role in heart related disease and disorder such as cardiovascular disease (CVD), pulmonary disease, and sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) \cite{huigen2002investigation,chi2010dry,refet2008biopotential, malmivuo1995bioelectromagnetism}. EMG represents the activity of skeletal muscles by electrical signal. This signal has been utilised to analyse medical abnormality, muscle activation level, and recruitment order \cite{de2002surface,fridlund1986guidelines, de1997use, merletti2009technology}. Heart rate (HR), or also known as heart pulse, represents the speed of the heartbeat \cite{allen2007photoplethysmography,shelley2007photoplethysmography}. HR has been become the

The heart is a vital organ that pumps oxygenated blood to the whole body by repeated rhythmic contractions, and continued heart beats are essential for the body to live. The heart is an electromechanical pump, the electrical activity of the heart acts to trigger and synchronise mechanical contractions. The heart’s natural pacemaker initiates electrical activity that spreads in the ventricles as shown in Figure 1.1 (a), which shows activation isochrones for the human ventricles [1]. The electrical activity of the heart can be recorded using electrocardiogram (ECG); Figure 1.1 (b) shows the ECG recording for the normal heart rhythm where each beat is registered as a single event.

This week’s primal pictures I was able to review autonomic nervous system. ANS is the part of the peripheral nervous system that subconsciously maintains, monitors and controls our internal body functions. Body functions like heart rate, vessel diameter, smooth muscle surrounding organs and the secretions of glands. ANS divided in 3 parts, sympathetic nervous system, parasympathetic nervous system and enteric systems. The fibers in these systems arise in the central nervous system as preganglionic fibers. Most organs are innervated by fibers from both parasympathetic and sympathetic divisions of the ANS. The hypothalamus is the overall regulator and controls the activities of these systems. The sympathetic system controls our fight or flight

We have two systems within the Autonomic Nervous System. The sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system.

The organs of our body are controlled by many systems in order to function correctly and efficiently in order to survive within the environment we live in. These include the heart, stomach and intestines and other vital organs and body systems. All of the systems in our body are regulated by a part of the nervous system called the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The ANS is part of the peripheral nervous system and it controls many organs and muscles within the body. Rather bizarrely we are unable to determine or feel its presence in our bodies as it is working involuntary, as a reflexive manner. A common example of this involuntary action is best understood when

Research: A normal resting heart rate varies from 60 to 100 beats per minute. A resting heart rate is a heart pumping the lowest amount of blood due to the lack of physical activity. A lower heart rate at rest implies more efficient heart function and better cardiovascular fitness. A well-trained athlete might have a normal resting heart rate closer to 40 beats per minute. To measure heart rate one has to check their pulse. They place the index and third finger on their neck to the side of your windpipe. They can also check the pulse on their wrist by placing two fingers between the bone and the tendon over your radial artery. Many factors can influence one's heart rate. For example of influences to one's heart rate: activity level, fitness

In the medical field, knowledge is the number key or tool to take control of a patients throughout your shift and career because not every patient will have the same symptoms or illness as one another. Vital signs is a much needed skill to keep your patients alive without reading the wrong results or documenting the wrong results. Vital signs are determined if your heart is pumping enough blood and oxygen to your entire body. Vital signs include respirations, blood pressure, temperature, and pulse. During this essay, I’ll discuss the usual rate of pulse within different categories of age groups, locations and how to complete the skill of a pulse rate on a patient or a loved one.

The autonomic nervous system (ANS) is the part of the motor division of the peripheral nervous system (PNS) that controls involuntary processes in the body (Wieczorek, 2014). Such functions include control of heart rate, gland activity, smooth muscle contraction and constriction of blood vessels (Biology-online.org, 2014). The ANS is divided into two branches, the sympathetic nervous system (SN) and the parasympathetic nervous system (PN). The SN is responsible for the “fight-or-flight” response, which results in increased preparedness for vigorous activity in response to exercise or emergency. The PN acts antagonistically to the SN, in that it produces the opposite effects to those of the SN. Under normal circumstances, the PN is dominant, and allows processes such as digestion and defecation to occur, while also conserving energy (Elmhurst.edu, 2014). Most of the visceral organs of the body are innervated by both sympathetic and parasympathetic neurones, with the exceptions being sweat glands and the smooth muscle of blood vessels- they are only innervated by sympathetic nerve fibres (Wieczorek, 2014).