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Parasympathetic innervation of the heart is partially controlled by the vagus nerve and is shared by the thoracic ganglia. Vagal and spinal ganglionic nerves mediate the lowering of the heart rate. The right vagus branch innervates the sinoatrial node. In healthy people, parasympathetic tone from these sources is well-matched to sympathetic tone.
While baseline vagal input is constant, the degree of stimulation it exerts is regulated by a balance of inputs from sympathetic and parasympathetic divisions of the autonomic nervous system, with parasympathetic activity generally being dominant. Vagal tone is frequently used to assess heart function, and is also useful in assessing emotional ...
Parasympathetic action helps in digestion and absorption of food by increasing the activity of the intestinal musculature, increasing gastric secretion, and relaxing the pyloric sphincter. It is called the “rest and digest” division of the ANS. [24] The parasympathetic nervous system decreases respiration and heart rate and increases digestion.
Regardless of the trigger, the mechanism of syncope is similar in the various vasovagal syncope syndromes. The nucleus tractus solitarii of the brainstem is activated directly or indirectly by the triggering stimulus, resulting in simultaneous enhancement of parasympathetic nervous system tone and withdrawal of sympathetic nervous system tone.
In neurogenic shock, the body loses its ability to activate the SNS so that only parasympathetic tone remains. The resulting loss of sympathetic tone, which plays a major role in other forms of shock, is responsible for the unique and atypical features mentioned above. [7] [9]
Airway smooth muscle is primarily innervated by cholinergic parasympathetic nerves, while its adrenergic sympathetic innervation is sparse to non-existent. Specifically, cholinergic parasympathetic signalling increases the airway tone, meaning the airway tone is proportional to the vagal tone. [8] [10]
This is a table of neurotransmitter actions in the ANS (autonomic nervous system).It includes the circulatory system, the respiratory system, the visual system, the digestive system, the endocrine system, the urinary system, the reproductive system, and the integumentary system.
Another major difference between the two ANS (autonomic nervous systems) is divergence. Whereas in the parasympathetic division there is a divergence factor of roughly 1:4, in the sympathetic division there can be a divergence of up to 1:20. This is due to the number of synapses formed by the preganglionic fibers with ganglionic neurons.