Thirteen anesthetized, tracheotomized rabbits were studied by a total of 311 tracheal stimulations: 196 at rest and 115 during exercise.
During muscle contractions, the incidence of the cough reflex (CR) decreased and the expiration reflex (ER) increased (p聽<聽0.0001). The sensitivity of the CR and ER both decreased during exercise compared to the sensitivity of the CR at rest (p聽<聽0.02), while the strength of the expulsive response remained unchanged.
These results indicate that adjustments occurring during muscle contractions likely downregulate tracheal defensive reflexes in anesthetized rabbits.