Final Exam - Renal/Biophysics Flashcards
What is pressure described as in mmHg?
The force it takes to move a column of Hg 1 mm
What is the most important determinant for blood flow?
Describe the determinant’s function.
- Vascular resistance
- Higher resistance = decreased blood flow after resistance and higher pressure before resistance
- Determines blood pressure
- Regulated by arterioles
Describe the pressures found before and after a point of resistance?
- Between source of force and resistance = high pressure
- After source of resistance = low pressure
What is the inverse of vasular resistance?
Describe it’s characteristics?
- Vascular Conductance
- Describes ease of blood flow
- Very easy to drive blood = high conductance
- Hard to drive blood = low conductance
Where is the vast mojority of blood found?
- Systemic veins
Describe a system in series and its resistance?
- A system that has tubes or pathways arranged end to end
- The resistance is equal to the sum of each tubes individual resistance
Describe a system in parallel and its resistance?
- Tubes of equal length, size, and resistance in parellel
- This decreases resistance because of the increase in number of potential pathways
What does cross sectional area describe?
The area inside the cross-section of a vessel
Describe the cross sectional area in different vessels and how it relates to velocity?
The smaller the cross sectional area, or fewer pathways, the higher the flow
The larger the cross sectional area and number of pathway the slower the flow
The capillaries have the lowest velocity because there is many, many of them, and therefore have a large cross sectional area.
They are also after the resistance arteries, causing them to have slower velocity.
The further away from the heart, the slower the velocity
Explain the dip in pressure when blood arrives are the small arteries and arterioles?
What drug works on these vessels?
The small arteries and arterioles are high resistance vessels, and are primary determinants of our blood pressure.
This means before the resistance pressure is high and after the resistance pressure is low.
There is also an increased number of pathways the further from the heart.
Phenylephrine squeezes resistance vessels causing an increased pressure in the large vessels before the “choke point”, and decreased resistance after the “choke point”
How is the amount of blood flow to a tissue determined?
Blood flow is increased or decreased based upon a tissue’s metabolic demands.
Describe laminar flow?
Flow of blood where all blood is moving in the same direction, very efficient
Blood closest to the vessels walls have more resistance and have lower velocity than the blood furthest from the walls
Describe turbulent/disorderly flow?
What are its adverse effects?
What can cause it?
Blood is flowing in many different directions including into the vessel wall
Cholesterol and calcium is being deposited more because blood is being slammed into the vessel wall, leads to vessel remodeling
Typically caused by a resistance or choke point in the vessel disturbing flow and causing blood to spray onto the walls after the choke point (like finger over a water hose)
How much blood do the kidneys get?
Why is this important?
- ~20% of cardiac output or 1100 mL/min
- The kidneys recieve more blood than they metabolically need, but require a larger flow of blood in order to adequately filter
What is Ohm’s Law?
When used for vasculature?
V=IR
For the vasculature: Delta Pressure = flow x vascular resistance
What does Poiseuille’s Law tell us regarding blood flow?
That a very small change in vessel diameter can cause a large change in flow
How can you determine vascular resistance in the kidney?
Rewrite Ohm’s Law: R = Delta P/F
F = 1100 mL/min (20% of 5L CO)
How could you calculate peripheral vascular resistance?
R= delta P/F
Delta P = difference is pressure between Aorta and R atria
F = cardiac output
How could you calculate vascular conductance?
Vascular conductance = 1/Resistance
What is normal pressures are the end and begining of a capillary?
Beginning: 30 mmHg
End: 10 mmHg
Define filtration and reabsorption?
Filtration: Fluid moving out of the capillaries
Reabsorption: Fluid moving into the capillaries
What is the primary cause of pressure drop from large arteries to capillaries?
High vascular resistance from arterioles
Not due to the increased number of pathways
What controls the blood flow through the capillaries?
Arterioles - they have lots of smooth muscle that can increase or decrease blood flow to the capillaries
How many capillaries are in the body?
How much surface area do they make up combined?
> 10 Billion
500-700 square meters
Compare diameter, cross-sectional area, and blood flow in the aorta and vena cavae?
Aorta: internal diameter is relatively small and there is only one path for all the blood to take, making the cross sectional area low and therefore the velocity very high.
Vena cavae: There are 2 pathways (inferior and superior) and the internal diameter is slightly larger. Because there are 2 paths with larger diameters, the cross sectional area is larger than the aorta, causing a lower velocity of blood flow.
Describe the strucuture of the arterioles and it’s function?
- Very thick walls with smooth muscles allowing for regulation of vascular resistance
- Controls flow of blood to capillaries
- Small internal diameter
- High wall thickness:internal diameter ratio
Describe the structure of the capillaries and it’s function?
- Wall is only 1 layer thick comprised of only endothelial cells
- Cannot contract or relax
- This allows for nutrient exchange
How does the cross sectional area of the capillaries relate to blood flow?
Because the are billions of capillaires, the cross sectional area is very high leading to a slow velocity of blood flow
What is the normal arterial blood pressure (MAP)?
100 mmHg
What are the 4 capillary starling forces?
- Pcap: Capillary Hydrostatic Pressue
- Pisf: Interstitial fluid hydrostatic pressure
- πcap: Caillary colloid osmotic pressure; oncotic pressure
- πisf: Interstitial fluid colloid osmotic pressure
Describe systemic Pcap?
- The hydrostatic or physical fluid pressure inside of the capillary
- 30mmHg at arterial end
- 10mmHg at the venous end
Describe systemic Pisf?
- Physical fluid pressure of contained outside of the capillary (interstitium)
- If pressure was positive, will oppose filtration at arterial end and promote reabsorption at venule end.
- Normal pressure is -3 mmHg, due to pull of fluid from interstitium by the lymphatics
Describe πcap?
- The pressure contributed by the protiens within the capillary
- Plasma proteins are normal impermeable and help to retain fluid within the CV system (oppose filtration)
- Normal is 28 mmHg