THE REGIONAL BLOOD FLOW OF BRAINSTEM AND EFFECT OF ANTI-VERTIGO DRUGS

Abstract

The incidence of vertigenous complaint has tended to increase among the aged people. Many of patients are suffering from the disturbance of cerebral circulation due to arteriosclerosis, hypertension and hypotension etc.
We were interested in studying how vertigo was induced by disturbance of the circulation in brainstem and labrynth by vertebrobasilar blood flow insufficiency.
Therefore, we investigated the regional blood flow of brainstems in dogs by means of the crossed thermocouple method (double needle type).
Also, systemic arterial blood pressure, mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate were measured by a mercury manometer and the internal carotid arterial blood flow by an electromagnetic flow meter.
In the first stage of this experiment we used anti-vertigo drugs such as vasodilating drugs, metabolic activators, tranquilizing drugs, antihistaminic drugs, and drugs for autonomic nervous system in order to investigate the influence on regional blood flow.
Most of the vasodilating drugs caused increases in heart rate, regional blood flow of the brainstem and internal carotid arterial blood flow, and decreases in mean blood pressure, but sodium bicarbonate increased only the regional blood flow of the brainstem.
Other anti-vertigo drugs also increased regional blood flow of the brainstem in a similar manner to the aforementioned vasodilating drugs.