[The effect of propranolol on the functional condition of the central and autonomic nervous system in persons of various ages].

The effect of propranolol (0.6 mg/kg b.w.) on the functional state of the central and vegetative nervous system was studied in 60 apparently healthy of different age by means of electroencephalography and spectral analysis of the cardiac rhythm. In the young subjects propranolol produced inhibitory effects on the central nervous system, while in the elderly and very elderly subjects it was predominantly an activating one. The elderly versus young subjects showed a more marked impairment of the sympathetic effects on the cardiac rhythm due to propranolol administration. It was a characteristic feature of propranolol action to display a disaccord between its effects on the central nervous system and vegetative control of the cardiac rhythm in the very elderly people.