Properties of Special Circulation Flashcards
What are the 3 main characteristics of special circulations?
- Special requirements met by the circulation
- Special structural or functional features of the circulation
- Specific problems relating to that circulation
Describe the coronary circulation
Where do they begin?
What do they do, and what are the coronary arteries?
What do the cardiac veins carry and where do they carry it to?
What is the coronary sinus?
- Two coronary arteries originate from the left side of the heart at the beginning (root) of the aorta, just after it exits the left ventricle. These arteries supply blood to the heart itself. It includes the right and left coronary arteries which divide.
- Cardiac veins carry blood with a poor level of oxygen, from the myocardium to the right atrium. Most of the blood of the coronary veins returns through the coronary sinus. Coronary sinus enters the superior vena cava.
What are the 2 special requirements of the myocardium muscle?
- Needs a high basal supply of O2 – 20x resting skeletal muscle
- Increase O2 supply in proportion to increased demand/cardiac work
What are the 3 special structural features of the heart?
- High capillary density
- Large surface area for O2 transfer
- Together these reduce diffusion distance to myocytes….diffusion time is proportional to distance squared – so O2 transport is fast.
In terms of capillaries and fibres, what are the special structural features of the heart?
Cardiac muscle contains high numbers of fibres and capillaries giving rise to shorter diffusion distances.
What are the 4 special functional features during normal activity?
- High blood flow - 10x the flow per weight of rest of body.
- Relatively sparse sympathetic innervation
- High nitric oxide released leading to vasodilatation – less sympathetic tone, quite dilated which allows for high O2 extraction.
- High O2 extraction (75%) – average in body is 25%
What are the 3 special functional features during increased demand?
- Coronary blood flow increases in proportion to demands.
- Production of vasodilators (adenosine, K+, acidosis) out-compete relatively low sympathetic vasoconstriction.
- Circulating adrenaline dilates coronary vessels due to abundance of 2-adrenoceptors
Oxygen unloading to myocardium – during normal activity
Bohr shift
- Coronary sinus blood returning to right atrium from myocardial tissue has a greater carbon dioxide content due to high capillary density, surface area and small diffusion difference.
- The high CO2 and low pH has shifted the curve to the right meaning that haemoglobin has less affinity for oxygen and more O2 is given up to the myocardial tissues.
- The myocardium is able to extract 75% of the oxygen as opposed to typically 25% in other tissues
How does Increased O2 requirement produce increased blood flow?
Extraction is near max during normal activity.
Therefore to provide more O2 during demand, we must increase blood flow.
Myocardium metabolism generates metabolites to produce vasodilatation, increase blood flow
(metabolic hyperaemia).
eg. Adenosine, produced by ATP metabolism and is released from cardiac myocytes. Also, increases in pCO2, H+, K+ levels.
Human coronary arteries are functional end-arteries
Ischaemic Heart Disease
Coronary arteries are functional end-arteries and therefore decreased perfusion produces major problems. Therefore, a whole area of the heart is starved of oxygen. The tissue can die, and wont conduct, having serious consequences.
Heart is very susceptible to sudden and slow obstruction
Sudden - acute thrombosis, produce myocardial infarction
Slow - atheroma (sub-endothelium lipid plaques) chronic narrowing of lumen, produces angina.
Systole obstructs coronary blood flow.
What happens if you get an occlusion in your left coronary artery?
Occlusion leading to obstruction of blood flow to anterior (front) left ventricle – myocardial infarction
- ischemic tissue, acidosis, pain (stimulation of C-fibres)
- impaired contractility
- sympathetic activation
- arrhythmias
- cell death (necrosis)
Describe the resistance in a normal artery/ arteriole at rest
Describe the resistance in a normal artery/ arteriole during exercise
At rest, resistance is low in a large coronary artery. Then resistance is high in the arterioles
During exercise, we still have a low resistance to flow in artery. We get metabolic vasodilation of arterioles to reduce resistance, so we have an increased blood flow to meet oxygen demands
Describe the resistance in a stenosis artery/ arteriole at rest
Describe the resistance in a stenosis artery/ arteriole during exercise
In artery, stenosis increases resistance. Metabolic hyperaemia occurs at rest, so blood flow meets needs. Resistance is high in arteries. Resistance in arterioles is reduced.
During exercise, arterioles further dilate to reduce resistance, but total resistance is still high due to stenosis. Oxygen demand cannot be met, angina develops. Resistance is high in the artery and in arterioles resistance isn’t reduced enough
When can blood flow through the coronary arteries
Blood can only flow through the coronary arteries during diastole
What 3 factors lead to reduced coronary flow?
- Shortening diastole, eg. high heart rate.
- Increased ventricular end-diastolic pressure, eg. Heart failure (aortic stenosis, stiffening of ventricle).
- Reduced diastolic arterial pressure, eg. hypotension, aortic regurgitation. This means the heart cannot relax enough