PROPERTIES OF HEART

MUSCLES
 PROPERTIES OF HEART MUSCLES
• Electrical
– Excitability (Bathmotropic action)
– Autorhythmicity
– Conductivity (Dromotropic action)
• Mechanical
– Contractility (Inotropic action)
– Refractory period
– Staircase /Treppe effect
 1.
EXCITABILITY
 1.EXCITABILITY
• Ability of living tissue to give response to a
stimulus of adequate strength and duration.
• Response in form of development of action
potential (AP).
• AP initiated by SA Node → travels along
conductivity pathway → excite the atrial and
ventricular muscle fibers.
 1- EXCITABILITY
ACTION POTENTIAL IN CARDIAC MUSCLE:
• AP in single cardiac muscle occurs in four
stages:
1. Initial Depolarization:
• It is very rapid and lasts for about 2 msec.
• Amplitude of depolarization is about +20mV.
• Rapid opening of fast Sodium Channels and
rapid influx of Sodium ions.
 ACTION POTENTIAL IN
CARDIAC MUSCLE
2. Initial Repolarizaton:
• Rapid repolarization for short period of 2msec.
• Rapid repolarization is represented by the
notch, just before the plateau.
• Transient opening of K+ channels and efflux of
small quantity of K+.
• Simultaneously, fast Na+ channels closed.
 ACTION POTENTIAL IN CARDIAC
MUSCLE
3. Plateau- Final Depolarization:
• Plateau(stable period) lasts for 0.2 sec in atrial
muscle fibers and 0.3 sec in ventricular muscle
fibers.
• Because of this contraction time of cardiac
muscles in longer about 5-15 times than in
skeletal muscles.
• Slow Ca+ channels opens for a longer period
and influx of Ca+ ions. These Ca+ ions play very
important role in contractile process.
 ACTION POTENTIAL IN
CARDIAC MUSCLE
4. Final Repolarization:
• Slow process and lasts for about 0.05-0.08 sec.
• Efflux K+ of ions increases.
• It makes negativity inside which results in final
repolarization.
1- EXCITABILITY
 FACTORS AFFECTING EXITABILITY
Factors that increase excitability
• Sympathetic stimulation - Lowers the resting
membrane potential.
• Mild Hyperkalemia (increase in potassium
concentration) - partial depolarization.
• Hypocalcaemia (decrease in calcium
concentration) - partial depolarization
• Digitalis - increase atrial muscle excitability
• Mild Hypoxia - Partial depolarization.
 FACTORS AFFECTING EXITABILITY
Factors that decrease excitability
• Parasympathetic Stimulation - decreases
excitability only of the atrial muscle cells.
• Hyponatremia (decrease in Na+ concentration)
• Hypokalemia - Hyperpolarization
• Hypercalcemia - decreases permeability to
sodium
• Digitalis - decreases ventricular muscle
excitability
 PATHOLOGICAL CONDITIONS OF
EXCITABILITY
1. Pulsus Alternans
2. Extra-systoles
3. Paroxysmal Tachycardia
4. Atrial Flutter: Atria beating at rate of 200-300/min.
5. Atrial Fibrillation: Atria beating at very high rate of
>350 beats/min.
6. Ventricular Flutter: Ventricles beating at a high rate of
200-350/min.
7. Ventricular Fibrillation: Ventricles beat at an
extremely high rate of >350 beats/min.
 2.
RHYTHMICITY
OR
AUTORHYTHMICITY
 2. RHYTHMICITY
• Rhythmicity is the ability of a tissue to
generate its own impulses regularly. (OR)
• The ability of the heart to initiate its beat
continuously and regularly without external
stimulation.
• More appropriately named as Autorhythmicity
or Self-Excitation.
• Normal Heart Rate: 72 beats/min.
 2. RHYTHMICITY
• The heart contains special excitatory and
conductive system each capable of discharging
at regular intervals and of conducting
impulses known as PACEMAKER.
• Myogenic in origin i.e. independent from
nerve supply.
 2. RHYTHMICITY
Due To The Specialized Excitatory & Conductive
System Of The Heart
↓
Intrinsic Ability Of Self-excitation
(Waves Of Depolarization)
↓
Cardiac Impulses
 AUTORYTHMIC FIBERS
• Forms 1% of the cardiac muscle fibers
• Have two important functions:
1. Act as a Pacemaker (Set the rhythm of
electrical
excitation)
2. Conductive system (Network of
specialized cardiac muscle fibers that provide
a path for each cycle of cardiac excitation to
progress through the heart).
 LOCATIONS OF
AUTORHYTHMIC CELLS
1. Sino-atrial node (SA node): Specialized region in
right atrial wall near opening of superior vena cava.
2. Atrio-ventricular node (AV node): Small bundle of
specialized cardiac cells located at base of right
atrium.
3. Bundle of His: Originate from AV node and enters
interventricular septum. Divides to form right and
left bundle branches.
4. Purkinje fibers: Small, terminal fibers that extend
from bundle of His and spread throughout
ventricular myocardium.
 MECHANISM OF AUTORHYTHMICITY

• Auto-rhythmic cells do not have stable resting

membrane potential (RMP).
• The membrane of these specialized tissue is
leaky membrane i.e. not all of Na+/Ca+ channels
close during repolarization stage.
• This inflow of Na+/Ca+ results in partial
depolarization → increase in permeability to
Na+/Ca+ .
• Unstable resting membrane potential =
pacemaker potential.
 MECHANISM OF
AUTORHYTHMICITY
 FACTORS AFFECTING RHYTHMICITY
i. Sympathetic Stimulation
ii. Parasympathetic Stimulation
iii. Inorganic Ions
iv. Temperature
v. Oxygen supply
vi. pH
vii. Drugs & Toxins
 3.

CONDUCTIVITY
 3. CONDUCTIVITY
• Property by which excitation is conducted
through the cardiac tissue.
• Impulses from SA node are transmitted to
other cardiac tissues.
• Specialized conducting system ensure that
excitation travels to all the heart muscle fibers
and in a certain pre-defined pattern.
3. CONDUCTIVITY
 CONDUCTIVE SYSTEM OF HUMAN
HEART
• Made up of modified cardiac muscle fibers.
• Conduct impulses rapidly from SA Node to the
ventricles.
• Conductive tissues are also called as
Junctional Tissues.
• It is consisting of:
i. AV node.
ii. Bundle of His
iii. Right & left bundle branches
iv. Purkinje fibers
 CONDUCTIVE SYSTEM OF HUMAN
HEART
• SA node is situated in right atrium below the
opening of superior vena cava.
• AV node is present in right posterior of intra-
arterial septum.
• Impulses from SA node → right & left atria →
AV node via some special fibers called
internodal fibers.
• From AV node → Bundle of His → divides in
right & left branches → Purkinje fibers →
spread in ventricular myocardium.
 VELOCITY OF IMPULSES

TISSUE CONDUCTION RATE

(m/s)
Atrial muscle 0.3
Internodal fibers 1
AV node 0.05
Bundle of His 0.12
Purkinje system 4
Ventricular muscle 0.5
 HEART BLOCK
• Failure of impulses arising at Atria to reach
Ventricles
• Blockage at AV node or Bundle of His.
• Types of Heart Block
I. Partial: When some impulses fail to pass.
II. Complete: when all atrial impulses fail to
reach the ventricles, atria and ventricles beat
at their own rhythm and there is no
coordination.
 HEART BLOCK

Another classification heart block is divided

into three types:
• 1st degree: Delay in conduction
• 2nd degree: Partial block
• 3rd degree: Complete block
 4.
CONTRACTILITY
 4. CONTRACTILITY

• Ability of tissue to shorten in length after

receiving a stimulus.
• Contraction of the heart is called systole while
relaxation of the heart is called diastole.
• One systole and its following diastole is
called one cardiac cycle.
 4. CONTRACTILITY
• The contractile properties are:
1. All or none law
2. Staircase phenomenon
3. Summation of subliminal stimuli
4. Refractory period
 i. ALL OR NONE LAW

• “When a stimulus is applied, whatever may be

the strength, the whole cardiac muscle give
maximum response or it does not give any
response at all”.
• If the stimulus is below the threshold level,
muscles give no response.
• It is due to syncytial arrangement of cardiac
muscles.
 ii. STAIRCASE PHENOMENON

• Also known as Treppe Phenomenon or

Bowditch Effect.
• “When stimuli of same strength are applied at
short intervals, an increase in the height of
contraction is observed”.
• This is due to the BENEFICIAL EFFECT, mild
increase in temperature and increase in the
level of calcium ions.
 III. SUMMATION OF SUBLIMINAL
STIMULI

• When a series of sub-minimal stimuli are

applied to the cardiac muscle, it responds with
a contraction once all the sub –minimal add
up to produce a threshold stimulus.
 iv. REFRACTORY PERIOD

• It is a period in which the muscles do not

show any response to a stimulus.
• Two types:
i. Absolute Refractory Period
ii. Relative Refractory Period
 iv. REFRACTORY PERIOD

1. Absolute Refractory Period

• Muscle does not show any response whatever
may be the strength of stimulus.
• Depolarization occurs in this period so 2nd
depolarization is not possible.
2. Relative Refractory Period
• In this case, muscle shows the response if the
strength of the stimulus is increased to maximum.
• Muscle is in repolarizing stage.
 iv. REFRACTORY PERIOD

• Long refractory period (250 msec) compared

to skeletal muscle (3msec).
• During this period membrane is refractory to
further stimulation until contraction is over.
• Gives time to heart to relax after each
contraction, prevent from fatigue.
• It allows time for the heart chambers to fill
during diastole before next contraction.
iv. REFRACTORY PERIOD