[Effects of nifedipine and verapamil on body temperature in cats].

Nifedipine and verapamil injected into the cerebral ventricles of unanaesthetized cats produced a longlasting rise in the body temperature. The hyperthermic effect of nifedipine and verapamil were not dose-dependent. The hyperthermic effect of verapamil was preceded by a shortlasting fall in the body temperature, which was not dose-dependent. Calcium antagonists, nifedipine and verapamil also produced mydriasis, tachypnoea, dyspnoea, ataxia, tremor and muscular weakness. These symptoms were inconsistent and of slight intensity. In agreement with the theory of ionic set point controlling the body temperature, the most probable explanation is that calcium antagonists, nifedipine and verapamil produced changes in the body temperature by acting on sodium and calcium fluxes in the posterior hypothalamus.