A Case of Intraoperative Reproducible Transient Bradycardia During Total Hip Arthroplasty: Direct Activation of Parasympathetic Vagal Afferents From Bone

The Gallagher–Wilkinson reflex was first reported by Gallagher and Wilkinson in 2001, describing intraoperative transient and reproducible bradycardia and/or asystole during intramedullary reaming in patients undergoing total knee replacement. The reflex has been originally thought to result from an...

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Main Authors: Yifan Li, Joseph Moskal, Maxine Lee
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2025-01-01
Series:Case Reports in Anesthesiology
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/cria/5583839
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author Yifan Li
Joseph Moskal
Maxine Lee
author_facet Yifan Li
Joseph Moskal
Maxine Lee
author_sort Yifan Li
collection DOAJ
description The Gallagher–Wilkinson reflex was first reported by Gallagher and Wilkinson in 2001, describing intraoperative transient and reproducible bradycardia and/or asystole during intramedullary reaming in patients undergoing total knee replacement. The reflex has been originally thought to result from an indirect mechanism: the elevated intramedullary pressure transmits to intrapelvic and intra-abdominal viscera, indirectly causing a vagally mediated reflex bradycardia. Other case reports have documented this reflex and discounted potential physiologic causes such as microemboli or primary cardiac arrhythmia. Several preclinical and clinical studies have demonstrated how the parasympathetic innervation of bone modulates bone remodeling. This paper presents a case of a patient who underwent a total hip replacement, experiencing intraoperative transient and reproducible bradycardia. We postulate a direct mechanism for the Gallagher–Wilkinson reflex: increased pressure from intramedullary reaming directly activates the parasympathetic nervous system in the bone axis leading to vagally-mediated bradycardia. This case offers an alternative explanation for the Gallagher–Wilkinson reflex and emphasizes the important need for additional research to better understand parasympathetic innervation in the bone axis.
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spelling doaj-art-ea778070eaa741619e436d0ee34a7f062025-08-20T03:28:10ZengWileyCase Reports in Anesthesiology2090-63902025-01-01202510.1155/cria/5583839A Case of Intraoperative Reproducible Transient Bradycardia During Total Hip Arthroplasty: Direct Activation of Parasympathetic Vagal Afferents From BoneYifan Li0Joseph Moskal1Maxine Lee2Carilion ClinicDepartment of Orthopaedics SurgeryDepartment of AnesthesiologyThe Gallagher–Wilkinson reflex was first reported by Gallagher and Wilkinson in 2001, describing intraoperative transient and reproducible bradycardia and/or asystole during intramedullary reaming in patients undergoing total knee replacement. The reflex has been originally thought to result from an indirect mechanism: the elevated intramedullary pressure transmits to intrapelvic and intra-abdominal viscera, indirectly causing a vagally mediated reflex bradycardia. Other case reports have documented this reflex and discounted potential physiologic causes such as microemboli or primary cardiac arrhythmia. Several preclinical and clinical studies have demonstrated how the parasympathetic innervation of bone modulates bone remodeling. This paper presents a case of a patient who underwent a total hip replacement, experiencing intraoperative transient and reproducible bradycardia. We postulate a direct mechanism for the Gallagher–Wilkinson reflex: increased pressure from intramedullary reaming directly activates the parasympathetic nervous system in the bone axis leading to vagally-mediated bradycardia. This case offers an alternative explanation for the Gallagher–Wilkinson reflex and emphasizes the important need for additional research to better understand parasympathetic innervation in the bone axis.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/cria/5583839
spellingShingle Yifan Li
Joseph Moskal
Maxine Lee
A Case of Intraoperative Reproducible Transient Bradycardia During Total Hip Arthroplasty: Direct Activation of Parasympathetic Vagal Afferents From Bone
Case Reports in Anesthesiology
title A Case of Intraoperative Reproducible Transient Bradycardia During Total Hip Arthroplasty: Direct Activation of Parasympathetic Vagal Afferents From Bone
title_full A Case of Intraoperative Reproducible Transient Bradycardia During Total Hip Arthroplasty: Direct Activation of Parasympathetic Vagal Afferents From Bone
title_fullStr A Case of Intraoperative Reproducible Transient Bradycardia During Total Hip Arthroplasty: Direct Activation of Parasympathetic Vagal Afferents From Bone
title_full_unstemmed A Case of Intraoperative Reproducible Transient Bradycardia During Total Hip Arthroplasty: Direct Activation of Parasympathetic Vagal Afferents From Bone
title_short A Case of Intraoperative Reproducible Transient Bradycardia During Total Hip Arthroplasty: Direct Activation of Parasympathetic Vagal Afferents From Bone
title_sort case of intraoperative reproducible transient bradycardia during total hip arthroplasty direct activation of parasympathetic vagal afferents from bone
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/cria/5583839
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