Effects of voluntary hyperventilation on glucose, free fatty acids and several glucostatic hormones.

BACKGROUND

The aim of the present study was to measure the influence of a defined period of standardised voluntary hyperventilation on the levels of glucose, free fatty acids and several glucose regulating hormones in healthy volunteers.

STUDY

DESIGN

Eight healthy male subjects were submitted to 20 minutes of controlled hyperventilation and blood levels of glucose, free fatty acids, insulin, glucagon, cortisol, catecholamines and pCO2 were measured before, immediately after and 20 minutes after the end of the hyperventilation period.

RESULTS

The hyperventilation led to a significant increase in all above mentioned parameters, except for glucose, where the effect was negligible.

CONCLUSIONS

In view of the frequency of accompanying hyperventilation in a great variety of diseases and notably in some intensive care patients we postulate that pitfalls in the interpretation of plasma values of substances involved in glucose metabolism may be avoided by simultaneous determination of arterial pCO2.