Abstract 477: Chronic Baroreflex Activation Improves Baroreflex Control of Heart Rate In Obesity

Impaired baroreflex control of heart rate (BRS) and attendant risk for cardiac arrhythmias are associated with sympathetically-mediated obesity hypertension. Since both global and renal-specific sympathoinhibition have sustained antihypertensive effects in obesity, we compared BRS in obese dogs subjected to 7 days of electrical baroreflex activation (BA) and, after recovery (REC), to bilateral surgical renal denervation (RDX). After control (C) measurements and 4 weeks of high fat diet, fat intake was reduced (RF) to maintain a body weight increase of ∼ 50%, which led to an increase in mean arterial pressure (MAP) from 100±2 to 117±3 mmHg and heart rate (HR) from 86±3 to 130±4 bpm. Obesity hypertension was associated with decreased sensitivity of 24h spontaneous BRS (determined by the sequence technique from daily beat-to-beat time series) and pulse interval (PI) variability (24h SD). While both BA and RDX abolished hypertension, only BA diminished tachycardia and normalized BRS, consequently improving HR variability. Short-term systolic blood pressure variability (5 min SD) also decreased with high fat feeding and was restored to control upon reduction of fat intake (RF) during established obesity hypertension, suggesting a vasoplegic effect of fat. These data suggest that in addition to the antihypertensive effects of sympathoinhibition, BA corrects cardiac baroreflex dysfunction in obesity hypertension, presumably by enhancing cardiac vagal activity. This in turn markedly improves depressed HR variability, a known risk factor for cardiac arrhythmic events.