How useful are the cold pressor test and sustained isometric handgrip exercise with radionuclide ventriculography in the evaluation of patients with coronary artery disease?

• Published in: British Heart Journal Vol. 57; no. 4; pp. 319 - 328
• Main Authors: Northcote, R J, Cooke, M B
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and British Cardiovascular Society 01.04.1987; BMJ; BMJ Publishing Group LTD
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Biological and medical sciences; Blood Pressure; Cardiology. Vascular system; Cold Temperature; Coronary Disease - diagnosis; Coronary Disease - diagnostic imaging; Coronary Disease - physiopathology; Coronary heart disease; Heart; Heart - diagnostic imaging; Heart Function Tests - methods; Heart Rate; Humans; Isometric Contraction; Male; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Muscle Contraction; Radionuclide Imaging; Space life sciences; Stroke Volume; Heart; Radionuclide study; Human; Cold; Cardiovascular disease; Isometric muscular contraction; Radioisotope; Coronary heart disease; Hand; Left ventriculography; Test; Exercise tolerance test; Hemodynamics
• ISSN: 0007-0769; 1468-201X; 2053-5864
• DOI: 10.1136/hrt.57.4.319

The feasibility of using the cold pressor test and the sustained isometric handgrip test as alternatives to dynamic exercise for stressing the heart was investigated. Serial changes in heart rate, blood pressure, and left ventricular performance induced by these tests were studied by radionuclide ventriculography in patients with coronary artery disease and in normal volunteers. Both tests significantly increased heart rate and blood pressure. The reproducibility of serial evaluation of ejection fraction response to cold pressor and isometric handgrip stresses was satisfactory but the sensitivity for detecting coronary artery disease was not. Both stress tests are valuable interventions for the serial evaluation of left ventricular function by radionuclide ventriculography, but they should not be used to detect coronary artery disease.