What is "bathmotropic"

a. (context physiology English) That influences the response of tissue to stimulus, especially that of cardiac muscle

' Bathmotropic' often refers to modifying the degree of excitability specifically of the heart; in general, it refers to modification of the degree of excitability (threshold of excitation) of musculature in general, including the heart. It especially is used to describe the effects of the cardiac nerves on cardiac excitability. Positive bathmotropic effects increase the response of muscle to stimulation, whereas negative bathmotropic effects decrease the response of muscle to stimulation. In a whole, it is the heart's reaction to catecholamines ( norepinephrine, epinephrine, dopamine). Conditions that decrease bathmotropy (i.e. hypercarbia) cause the heart to be less responsive to catecholaminergic drugs. A substance that has a bathmotropic effect is known as a bathmotrope.

While bathmotropic, as used herein, has been defined as pertaining to modification of the excitability of the heart, it can also refer to modification of the irritability of heart muscle, and the two terms are frequently used interchangeably.