cardiac glycosides

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car·di·ac gly·co·sides

generic term for a large number of drugs with the capacity to increase the force of contraction of the failing heart. Examples include digitalis (foxglove) extracts as well as those obtained from other plant and animal sources.

cardiac glycosides, steroidal phytochemicals that have a history of use as cardiac medicines, including digitalis and lily of the valley. Not recommended for use without physician guidance. Also called
cardioactive glycosides. See also therapy, digitalis.


1. pertaining to the heart. See also heart.
2. pertaining to the gastric cardia.

cardiac afterload
the impedance to ventricular emptying presented by aortic pressure.
cardiac area
cardiac biopsy
an uncommon clinical procedure. May be performed via thoracotomy or with a biopsy catheter introduced intravenously.
cardiac catheterization
the insertion of a catheter into a vein or artery and guiding it into the interior of the heart for purposes of measuring cardiac output, determining the oxygen content of blood in the heart chambers, and evaluating the structural components of the heart.
cardiac compensation
in cardiac disease the compensation for the inefficiency of the heart's pump action by enlisting the various reserves of the heart such as hypertrophy, enlargement, increase in rate, so as to maintain circulatory equilibrium and prevent the appearance of signs of congestive heart failure.
cardiac compression
an emergency measure to empty the ventricles of the heart in an effort to circulate the blood, and also to stimulate the heart so that it will resume its pumping action. Involves the application of pressure through the thoracic wall. More commonly used in animals than other forms of cardiac massage.
cardiac conducting cells
specialized cardiac fibers modified to conduct impulses from the A-V node via the septum to the ventricles. Called also Purkinje fibers.
cardiac conducting system
the cardiac tissue responsible for electrical conduction, made up of the sinoatrial node, the atrioventricular node, and the atrioventricular bundle and cardiac conducting fibers.
cardiac depressor nerve
a branch of the vagus nerve composed of afferent nerve fibers which arise around the base of the heart; called also aortic nerve.
cardiac dilatation
the heart volume is increased but the effective mass of cardiac muscle is not. A dilated heart has lost some of its reserve.
cardiac dullness
the area of the chest wall over which a dull sound, indicating the position of the heart, can be elicited by percussion.
cardiac failure
cardiac fibrillation
see ventricular fibrillation.
cardiac fibrosis
see cardiac cirrhosis.
cardiac flow load
the work required of the heart can be increased by a need for an increased flow rate of blood, e.g. when there is an anastomosis, congenital arteriovenous defect, portosystemic shunt.
cardiac function curves
statistical curves used in modeling the cardiovascular functions, relating e.g. venous return to cardiac output.
cardiac glands
in the cardiac region of the gastric wall; branched, tubular, coiled, mucus-secreting.
cardiac glycosides
the glycosides of Digitalis purpurea (digitoxin, gitalin and gitoxin) and digoxin (from D. lanata). Strophanthin and ouabain are glycosides found in Strophanthus spp. Other cardiac glycosides are present in the skin of toads (Bufo maritimus, B. vulgaris), but are of toxicological rather than therapeutic interest.
cardiac horse sickness
see african horse sickness.
cardiac hypertrophy
enlargement of the heart coincident with an increase in muscle mass; an indication of response to an increase in load which may or may not be associated with disease. It is an expression of cardiac compensation but some of the cardiac reserve has been lost.
cardiac impulse
see cardiac impulse. Called also apex beat.
cardiac index
cardiac output divided by the animal's body surface area in m2. The normal range for dogs is 1.8-3.5 l/m2.
left-sided cardiac enlargement
may involve either the left ventricle or atrium, or both, and can be demonstrated on radiographs and electrocardiography. Seen most commonly in mitral valvular disease in dogs.
cardiac massage
manual massage of the heart or stimulation with an electrical current through an open thoracic wall. The term is sometimes used interchangeably with cardiac compression.
cardiac mucosa
the most cranial of the gastric mucosae; secretes only mucus, except in pigs, in which the area covered by this mucosa is much larger than in the other species and bicarbonate is also secreted.
cardiac murmur
see heart murmur.
cardiac output
the volume of blood pumped per unit of time. May be calculated by oxygen consumption measurement or determined by dilution of indocyanine green or cold saline, using catheters with thermistors placed intravenously (thermodilution method). It can be estimated clinically by measuring heart rate, pulse quality or pressure, and assessment of tissue perfusion, e.g. capillary refill time.
cardiac pacing
employing cardiac pacemakers to control heart rate.
cardiac preload
ventricular end-diastolic volume.
cardiac pressure load
the stress of working against an elevated blood pressure in the arterial circuit; one of the two major groups of causes of heart disease; the other is flow load.
cardiac racing syndrome
a disease of companion birds manifested by a sudden increase in heart rate, up to 1000/min, in the period immediately after being restrained. Death occurs within a few seconds.
cardiac reserve
the reserve mechanisms in the heart to compensate for defects which could make the heart's pumping action ineffective. The reserve mechanisms include hypertrophy, enlargement, increase in heart rate and an increase in stroke volume, a result of the increase in muscle mass and the enlargement of the ventricles.
right-sided cardiac enlargement
may involve either the right ventricle or atrium. Occurs in heartworm disease in dogs.
cardiac rupture
penetration of the myocardium by a reticular foreign body in cows, or rupture of a patch of chronic fibrotic myocarditis in horses, causes cardiac tamponade and sudden death.
cardiac size
may increase as a result of hypertrophy, dilatation or a combination of the two. A common belief with some scientific support is that performance of horses in sprint races is closely related to heart size.
cardiac stroke volume
the amount of blood ejected with each systole.
cardiac thrill
see thrill.
cardiac valve fenestration
the valve surface is incomplete, creating a lattice effect; mostly congenital defects in foals.
cardiac valve hematocysts
congenital, blood-filled cysts on the atrioventricular valves considered to be of no pathogenic significance.
cardiac valve laceration
tearing of the valve tissue or attachment to myocardium may occur spontaneously or as a sequel to endocarditis; adds a significant additional flow load to the heart.
cardiac valve rupture
see cardiac valve laceration (above).
cardiac valves
heart valves formed by evaginations of the cardiac and vascular endothelium supported by connective tissue; includes atrioventricular and semilunar valves on both sides of the heart.
cardiac valvular disease
see valvular disease.
cardiac vascular shunts
includes patent foramen ovale, ventricular septal defect, tetralogy of Fallot, patent ductus arteriosus.
cardiac work
includes effective work—that needed for the onward propulsion of blood through the correct channels against arterial pressure, total work—includes all of the work performed by the heart including some involved in moving blood in the wrong direction.
References in periodicals archive ?
Studies have suggested that plant-derived cardiac glycosides regulate some cellular processes, such as proliferation and apoptosis, in a variety of cancer cells (4-7).
titrated the intensity of ACE inhibition, diuretic and cardiac glycoside usage according to either N-BNP concentrations or existing clinical acumen.
Because monarch caterpillars incorporate the heart toxins, called cardiac glycosides, that milkweeds rely on for their own defense against herbivores, eating a monarch can "really set a bird's heart jumping," he observes.
Despite the potentials of this plant for bridging the enlarging gap of protein deficiency and meeting the world's demand for high quality protein crops for livestock feed, there is no human dietary or commercial demand for the seeds due to the presence of the anti-nutritional, toxic cardiac glycosides and aglycones found in them [14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21].
Oleander contains two potent cardiac glycosides or cardenolides, oleandrin and neriine, which are present in all parts of plant [6,10].
beta]-Adrenergic agonists and cardiac glycosides are two well-known cardiotonics in current inotropic therapy (Stevenson 1998; Felker and O'Connor 2001).
The phytochemical screening and quantitative estimation of the percentage crude yield of chemical constituents of the plants showed that the leaves are rich in alkaloids, flavonoids, tannin, saponins and cardiac glycosides.
For example, antihypertensive/cardiac drugs, such as calcium channel blockers, beta blockers, digitalis, and the cardiac glycosides, can cause depression yet may never be considered for this.
Tiny doses of cardiac glycosides increase the force of the heartbeat while slowing its rate, and physicians have long prescribed these drugs for patients with heart failure.
Fraction Test conducted Result Fraction 1 Tannins ++ (Yellow) Alkaloids ++ Cardiac Glycosides - Steroids + Fraction 2 Tannins - (Dark green) Alkaloids ++ Cardiac Glycosides + Steroids - Fraction 3 Tannins + + (Blue black) Alkaloids + Cardiac Glycosides - Steroids - Key: ++ = Heavy + = Trace - = Absent