ArticleHeart rhythm2017
Left cervical vagal nerve stimulation reduces skin sympathetic nerve activity in patients with drug resistant epilepsy.
Article in Heart rhythm, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 30 citations in OpenAlex.
- Acute Effects of Resonance Breathing on Skin Sympathetic Nerve Activity and Heart Rate Variability in Healthy Adults.Applied psychophysiology and biofeedback · 2025Trial
- Simultaneous noninvasive recording of electrocardiogram and skin sympathetic nerve activity (neuECG).Nature protocols · 2020Trial
- A Review of Vagus Nerve Stimulation for Disease: Comprehensive Theory and Evidence for Mechanisms of Action.Comprehensive physiology · 2026Review
- Using subcutaneous nerve stimulation to control atrial fibrillation.Heart rhythm O2 · 2026Article
- Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation for disorders of consciousness: a narrative review of neurophysiological mechanisms, clinical evidence, and future directions.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2026Review
- Exploring the Interaction Between Sleep Patterns, Cardiac Autonomic Function, and Traditional Cardiovascular Risk Factors Following Acute Myocardial Infarction.Clinical cardiology · 2025Article
- The effect of vagal nerve stimulation treatment on autonomic nervous system in patients with refractory epilepsy.Frontiers in neurology · 2025Article
- Transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation in the treatment of disorders of consciousness: mechanisms and applications.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2023Review
- The Mechanism of Cardiac Sympathetic Activity Assessment Methods: Current Knowledge.Frontiers in cardiovascular medicine · 2022Review
- Establishment of ultrasound-guided stellate ganglion block in rats.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2022Article
- Shoulder transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation decreases heart rate via potentiating vagal tone.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- Subcutaneous nerve stimulation reduces sympathetic nerve activity in ambulatory dogs with myocardial infarction.Heart rhythm · 2020Article
- Sex Differences in Vagus Nerve Stimulation Effects on Rat Cardiovascular and Immune Systems.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2020Article
- Skin sympathetic nerve activity and the temporal clustering of cardiac arrhythmias.JCI insight · 2019Article
- Circadian rhythm of cardiac electrophysiology, arrhythmogenesis, and the underlying mechanisms.Heart rhythm · 2019Review
- Medulla Oblongata Hemorrhage and Takotsubo Syndrome: Any Advantages from Monitoring Cardiac Autonomic Adrenergic Surges?Neurocritical care · 2018Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
13 authors at 4 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundWe recently reported that skin sympathetic nerve activity (SKNA) can be used to estimate sympathetic tone in humans. In animal models, vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) can damage the stellate ganglion, reduce stellate ganglion nerve activity, and suppress cardiac arrhythmia. Whether VNS can suppress sympathetic tone in humans remains unclear.
objectiveThe purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that VNS suppresses SKNA in patients with drug-resistant epilepsy.
methodsECG patch electrodes were used to continuously record SKNA in 26 patients with drug-resistant epilepsy who were admitted for video electroencephalographic monitoring. Among them, 6 (2 men, age 40 ± 11 years) were previously treated with VNS and 20 (7 men, age 37 ± 8 years) were not. The signals from ECG leads I and II were filtered to detect SKNA.
resultsVNS had an on-time of 30 seconds and off-time of 158 ± 72 seconds, with output of 1.92 ± 0.42 mA at 24.17 ± 2.01 Hz. Average SKNA during VNS off-time was 1.06 μV (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.93-1.18) in lead I and 1.13 μV (95% CI 0.99-1.27) in lead II, which was significantly lower than 1.38 μV (95% CI 1.01-1.75; P = .036) and 1.38 μV (95% CI 0.98-1.78; P = .035) in the control group, respectively. Heart rate was 65 bpm (95% CI 59-71) in the VNS group, which was significantly lower than 77 bpm (95% CI 71-83) in the control group.
conclusionPatients with VNS had significantly lower SKNA than those without VNS.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.