Effect of Low Potassium Diet on Cyclopropane-Epinephrine Ventricular Tachycardia and Arterial Plasma Potassium in Dogs.

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Abstract
Twenty dogs which had ventricular tachycardia during control studies were placed on a low K diet for 2-3 weeks. Both the resting level of arterial plasma K and the maximum K concentration following epinephrine injection were reduced in nearly all the dogs. Eleven animals showed a marked reduction or absence of the arrhythmia and the average increase in plasma K above resting level after epinephrine was only 6.4 mg% (or 54%) compared with 12.7 mg% (or 82%) on their control. Nine dogs continued to show irregularities and the average increase in plasma K in these dogs after injection of epinephrine was 12.5 mg% (or 102%) above their resting level compared to 16.5 mg% (108%) on their control. It is concluded that these studies confirm the view that an actual or relative increase in plasma K contributes, at least in part, to the increased cardiac sensitivity to epinephrine during cyclopropane anesthesia.