Document Detail


Walter Gaskell and the understanding of atrioventricular conduction and block.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  12020482     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
Walter Holbrook Gaskell was a nineteenth-century British physiologist whose investigations from 1874 until 1889 became central to our current understanding of cardiac physiology. His many cardiac contributions include the following: 1) the recognition of certain inherent properties of cardiac muscle; 2) the experimental proof that led to the acceptance of the myogenic theory of the origin of the heartbeat; 3) the mapping of the anatomy of the sympathetic nervous system; 4) the understanding of the dual autonomic control of the heart; 5) the discovery of the vasodilating effect of sympathetic stimulation on blood flow through skeletal muscle arteries; and 6) the introduction of the concept of heart block. Gaskell's elucidation of the sequence of cardiac contraction and atrioventricular block and his concepts of rhythmicity, excitability, contractility, conductivity and tonicity provided the physiologic explanation necessary for the future understanding of cardiac rhythm disturbances.
Authors:
Mark E Silverman; Charles B Upshaw
Publication Detail:
Type:  Biography; Historical Article; Journal Article; Portraits    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Journal of the American College of Cardiology     Volume:  39     ISSN:  0735-1097     ISO Abbreviation:  J. Am. Coll. Cardiol.     Publication Date:  2002 May 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2002-05-21     Completed Date:  2002-06-06     Revised Date:  2008-11-21    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  8301365     Medline TA:  J Am Coll Cardiol     Country:  United States    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  1574-80     Citation Subset:  AIM; IM    
Affiliation:
Department of Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA. marksil@attbi.com
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Animals
Electrocardiography / history*
England
Heart / physiology
Heart Block / history*,  physiopathology
History, 19th Century
History, 20th Century
Humans
Physiology / history
Personal Name Subject
Personal Name Subject:
Walter Gaskell

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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