Regulation of Blood Flow Flashcards
What is Ohm’s Law?
flow between any two points is determined by the pressure difference between the points/ divided by resistance
Q=delta(P)/R, q=flow
only applies to laminar flow
Where are some common points in vasculature for turbulence to develop?
- any time the cross sectional area decreases (velocity increases)
- branch points
What is the equation for arterial pressure?
CO x TPR (total peripheral resistance)
Blood flow is often distributed among parallels routes in the body. What does this ensure?
1) biological fairness, meaning that each organ receives the same quality blood n terms of O2 and nutrients
2) total resistance is much lower (than if they were in series)
Which organs receive the bulk of blood flow at rest?
- splanchnic/GI
- skeletal muscle
- kidneys
- brain (same upon exertion!)
Which organs receive the bulk of blood flow upon exertion?
- skeletal muscle
- skin
- heart and brain
- kidneys and splanchnic (decrease to both)
What accounts for the increase or decrease of blood flow to the organs upon exertion?
sympathetic vasoconstriction decreases blood flow to some areas and other areas have mechanism to overcome the sympathetic constriction to increase blood flow-
The increased blood flow is an example of ACTIVE hyperemia
What the eqn for resistance in a vessel?
R= 8nl/(pi*r^4), where
l=tube length
n=viscosity
r=radius
What is Reynolds number? Eqn?
Re = dvp(density)/ n(viscosity)
Re above 400= turbulence in a branched/arched system
Re above 2000= turbulence in a linear system
What affects blood viscosity?
blood viscosity is greater than plasma because it contains erythrocytes. Thus, more red cells (HCT)= more viscosity= higher R
polycythemia= high R anemia= low R
Changes in blood flow distribution is mainly attributed to changes in what?
Resistance. Thus, by changing the resistance in each individual organ, blood flow can be individually manipulated
all organs have the same delta(P) essentially
What things rapidly regulate vascular resistance (changes occur in seconds to minutes)?
- local factors
- sympathetic NS
- humoral (circulating) factors
What things slowly regulate vascular resistance (changes occur in weeks to months)?
reduction in blood vessel lumen size (hypertrophy) and/or change in number of blood vessels per tissue unit (aka vascularity)
What is hyperemia?
increased blood flow
What are the two types of hyperemia?
- active (functional) -increased blood flow that follows increased tissue activity
- reactive- increased blood flow above original resting level that follows reduction of blood flow to specific tissue
What is the eqn for work of the heart?
Pressure x Volume
T or F. The greater the metabolic needs of an organ, the greater the blood flow
T. BUT this relationship is not linear, it is concave up because most tissues have blood flow reserves so they can handle small jumps in metabolism without needing more flow
What organ has a linear relationship between need and blood flow?
Heart, no cardiac reserve here
What is the relationship between arterial oxygen saturation (x) and blood flow (y)?
same as for metabolism and blood flow, concave up
How does O2 regulate BF in active hyperemia?
- increased tissue activity causes increased metabolism
- leads to decreased O2 sat initially in tissue
- vasodilation (radius increase) follows as a function/result of O2 levels
- BF increases and O2 restored
What is the relationship of time of interruption of BF and intensity and duration of reactive hyperemia?
blood flow after blockage is actually higher than before the blockade and takes a while to normalize. The longer the ischemia persists, the longer and more intense the reactive hyperemia is.
How does O2 regulate BF in reactive hyperemia?
- decrease in blood flow
- decrease in O2 delivery
- vasodilation follows
- blood flow increases
How does low oxygen influence vascular radius?
- low levels may decrease smooth muscle cell metabolism, thereby decreasing smooth muscle force generation, then leading to vascular relaxation
- oxygen sensing capacity in small arteries