Blood Supply to the Brain Flashcards
What are the main blood vessels in/to the brain?
See diagram in lecture notes
What percentage of your body mass is the brain and what percentage of cardiac output does it receive? What percentage of total body oxygen and glucose?
- ~ 2% of body weight
- Receives 15% of cardiac output and uses 20% of total body O2 and 25% of total body glucose
What is the average value of brain blood flow?
- Average brain blood flow = 46mL/100 grams of brain per minute
How long would anoxia to the brain need to last to lead to unconsciousness? What about permanent unconsciousness?
- 20 secs of anoxia lead to unconsciousness
- > 5 mins permanent unconsciousness
How is brain blood flow regulated?
- Flow regulated by auto-regulation
o Normotensive cerebral blood flow = ~50mL per 100g of brain tissue per min if cerebral perfusion pressure between 60-160mmHg
o ↓O2, ↑CO2 = ↑flow
What are the arteries and veins like in the brain?
- Arteries, thin walled, easily blocked, distorted or ruptured
- Veins, no valves, thin walled, no muscles or elasticity to help return
Below what PO2 will blood flow increase and by how much?
- Blood flow does not change until PO2 falls below ~50mmHg when cerebral blood flow increases if hypoxia decrease PO2 further then cerebral blood flow can increase up to 400% above resting levels.
What effect does CO2 have on blood flow and by how much?
- CO2 has a profound effect – hypercapnia causes marked dilation of cerebral arteries and increased blood flow hypocapnia constriction and decreased blood flow. 5% CO2 inhalation increases cerebral blood flow by 50%, 7% CO2 increases cerebral blood flow by 100%.
What percentage each do the internal carotids and vertebral arteries provide of the cerebral blood flow?
- Internal carotids = 80% of total cerebral blood flow to anterior 2/3rd of cerebral cortex
- Vertebral arteries = 20% of total cerebral blood flow to posterior 1/3rd of cerebral cortex, brainstem and spinal cord
See diagrams in lecture notes
What are the components of the circle of Willis?
See diagrams and angiograms in lecture notes
What would the Circle of Willis look like in a normal angiogram? In what percentage of the population can a classic Circle of Willis be seen?
- Under normal situations anterior communicating and posterior communicating closed
- Classic Circle of Willis seen in only 34.5% of population
When only should the collateral circulation be open? What does this mean?
- Collateral circulation should only open when there is a pressure difference
- Collateral circulation opens in pathologies
What do variants in cerebral arterial circle look like on an angiogram?
See diagrams in lecture notes
What are the main branches of the internal carotid artery (ICA) in the anterior circulation? What do they supply?
- Ophthalmic
o Orbit and retina – connects to external carotid artery - Posterior communicating
o Connects carotid and vertebral artery system - Middle cerebral artery
o Basal ganglia and internal capsule (striate arteries), lateral 2/3rds of cortex - Anterior cerebral
o Internal capsule, medial side of frontal and parietal lobes.
o Anastomose with MCA
See diagram and angiograms in lecture notes
Which artery supplies each part of the cerebral cortex?
See diagrams in lecture notes