Vagotomy by the local anesthetic procaine hydrochloride: a study in the rat.

Transmission of nerve impulses is prevented by the local anesthetic procaine hydrochloride. This study was undertaken in rat models, in which the vagus nerve mediates gastric acid secretion, to examine the action of 1 mL of 5% oral procaine on this secretion. The H+ output (mean +/- SEM) associated with pylorus ligation for 1 h (61 +/- 7 mumol) was depressed by vagotomy or procaine (4.7 +/- 0.5 mumol and 5.8 +/- 0.7 mumol, respectively; p less than 0.001). In the rat without pylorus ligation, reserpine (0.1 mg/kg, ip) stimulated H+ output .4 +/- 0.7 mumol; p less than 0.001). Vagotomy or procaine depressed .4 +/- 0.5 and 3 +/- 0.5 mumol, respectively versus 12.4 +/- 0.7 mumol han 0.001), and reserpine failed to influence this action. In the same in (1 unit/kg, ip) stimulated H+ output (36 +/- 3.1 versus 12 +/- 0.6 than 0.001), but had no effect on its depression by vagotomy (3 +/- /- 0.5 mumol) or procaine (4 +/- 0.4 versus 3.9 +/- 0.4 mumol). In the gastric diversion rat, a model for collecting gastric secretion from just distal to the pyloric sphincter into a plastic bag, the effect of vagotomy on the N+ output was similar to that of procaine (3.5 +/- 0.4 and 2.9 +/- 0.3 mumol, respectively, versus 14.8 +/- 0.5 mumol; mean +/- SEM.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)