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RECENT EXPERIMENTS and analyses have led to The Purposes of Cardiac Output
several rather startling concepts on the relationships and Arterial Pressure Control
between cardiac output and arterial pressure control. Cardiac output and arterial pressure control are
For instance, a long-term increase in total peripheral
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resistance does not cause any increase in arterial pres- much easier to understand if we delineate the purposes
sure if there is not a concomitant increase in renal
of these controls.
vascular resistance; instead, cardiac output decreases. Cardiac Output Control
Also, a chronic increase in blood volume causes hardly
any increase in cardiac output, but rather, usually The purpose of cardiac output control is to deliver
causes a marked increase in arterial pressure.' These to the body's tissues the necessary blood flow to per-
effects are almost exactly opposite to those observed form their functions. In most tissues, the need for flow
during the first few minutes after acute increases in is to transport nutrients to the tissues and excreta
total peripheral resistance or blood volume. away from the tissues. In the kidneys, the need is for
Thus, there seems to be no logic in the way that the sufficient flow for proper excretory function; in the
body controls cardiac output and arterial pressure - gastrointestinal tract, it is for adequate flow for glan-
almost as if these controls were a problem of dular secretion and for absorption; and in the skin, it
metaphysics rather than of purpose. is for body temperature control. Thus, each tissue has
The goal of this report is to show that there are logi- a certain requirement for blood flow, and the cardiac
cal systems for control of both cardiac output and output must keep in step with these needs.
arterial pressure, and especially that cardiac output However, the heart's capability to pump blood is
and arterial pressure are mainly controlled for not unlimited. Even a cardiac output of two times nor-
different purposes. mal, if it continues for days or weeks, seriously taxes
the long-term abilities of the heart. Therefore, the car-
diac output must be only great enough to deliver to the
tissues that amount of blood flow that is required; no
more, no less. Figure 1 is an illustration of this princi-
From the Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University ple. In a series of dogs, we purposely increased the car-
of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson, Mississippi.
This paper was presented as the Goerge C. Griffith Scientific Lec- diac output to more than two times normal by acute
ture, Los Angeles, California, September 17, 1980. infusion of blood, or we reduced the cardiac output
Address for correspondence: Arthur C. Guyton, M.D., Depart- below normal by hemorrhage. While the cardiac out-
ment of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Mississippi put was either too high or too low, we measured the
Medical Center, 2500 North State Street, Jackson, Mississippi total oxygen consumption of the animal. Increasing
39211.
Received October 22, 1980; revision accepted April 1, 1981. the cardiac output to two times normal increased the
Circulation 64, No. 6, 1981. oxygen consumption by only a few percent. On the
1079
logo CIRCULATION VOL 64, No 6, DECEMBER 1981
right atrial pressure.) Under these conditions, the in- pump more blood than is made available by the nor-
creasing heart pumping capacity increased the car- mal venous return.
diac output very markedly. Therefore, there is no reason to believe that in the
The lower curve of figure 3 shows the effect of the normal circulation, increasing the heart pumping
increasing pumping capacity when the circulation was capacity above normal will increase the cardiac output
normal. Cardiac output changed almost impercep- or the arterial pressure to higher than normal values.
tibly. How does one explain this failure of increased On the other hand, when increased amounts of blood
heart pumping capacity to increase the cardiac out- return from the veins, an increase in pumping capacity
of the heart often then becomes essential to keep up
with the returning blood.
5\Sllt*o. ~ ~
.
90 00 .0
o'..
250 r to
00 00
00 *0
The Hemodynamic Effects of Increased Blood Volume
200 1 or Decreased Vascular Compliance on Cardiac Output
and Arterial Pressure
15c ,/w' Though changes in blood volume and vascular
compliance are known to play a very important role in
NORMAL acute hemodynamic control of the circulation, the
10C quantitative effects of these factors are difficult to un-
derstand, partially because some of the experiments to
clarify the effects have been performed in animals with
5C normally functioning nervous systems and others have
been in animals either without nervous systems or with
C
I, , , , , t | s greatly depressed nervous systems as a result of
40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180 200 anesthesia.
HEART RATE (beats/min) three 5 of dogs incomposite
series illustrates
Figure effects recorded
which transfusions in
of blood
FIGURE 3. Effect of heart pumping capacity (as indicated equal to 30-40% of the dog's original blood volume
by hear t rate) on cardiac output in normal dogs and in dogs were given in only a few minutes.2' 6 In some dogs, the
with lawrge arteriovenous (A-V)fistulas. In the normal dog, function of the nervous system had been eliminated
changinig the heart pumping capacity had almost no effect either by total spinal anesthesia or by decapitation and
on caraliac output. (Drawn from data in Cowley et al.8) injection of the spinal cord with alcohol. In other dogs,
1082 CIRCULATION VOL 64, No 6, DECEMBER 1981
markedly because of local factors in the muscles three reasons: (1) The nervous reflexes adapt (that is,
directly dilating the blood vessels,8 and the sympa- they become inoperative as controllers) within a few
thetic nervous system constricts the capicitance vessels hours to a few days after an acute circulatory
of the circulation, especially the veins, and it also con- change.lc'l2 (2) Blood flow autoregulation occurs in
stricts the arterioles in those parts of the body besides almost all tissues of the body, which returns the blood
the exercising muscles." This sympathetic drive to the flows in these tissues essentially to normal regardless
circulation derives at least partly from signals of what happens to the arterial pressure.13~16 (3) The
generated in the central nervous system during the kidneys respond very markedly to changes in arterial
course of exercise and probably partly from reflexes pressure, increasing their output of salt and water at
that originate in the active muscles themselves. Dogs higher pressures and decreasing their output at lower
that had been sympathectomized experienced only one pressures."'-8 These three factors altogether make
of the above control factors, the very large decrease in blood volume extremely important in long-term cir-
resistance in the muscles, while the normal dogs had culatory control.
the benefit of the sympathetic drive. The decreased Effect of Adaptation of the Circulatory Reflexes
muscle resistance decreased the total peripheral
resistance by about 40%, which also decreased the The baroreceptor reflex is a typical arterial pres-
arterial pressure and raised the cardiac output, but sure-controlling reflex that every physician knows,
only by 32%. Obviously, if the arterial pressure had but other reflexes also originate in the heart, the lungs,
not fallen, far more blood would have flowed through and in the basal regions of the brain that also play very
the greatly dilated muscle blood vessels, and the car- important roles in pressure control. However, a con-
diac output would have been much greater. Further- sideration of the baroreceptor reflex will illustrate the
more, if the arterial pressure had actually risen, as oc- effect of pressure receptor adaptation on long-term
curred in the normal dogs with normal sympathetic control of the circulation.
signals, then the cardiac output would have risen still When a factor such as an increase in blood volume
much more. This is the effect that was observed in the increases the arterial pressure, the rising pressure im-
normal dogs: an increase in cardiac output of 130% in- mediately stimulates the baroreceptors. This in turn
stead of the almost insignificant increase of 32% seen causes reflex dilatation of the peripheral circulation
in the sympathectomized dogs. and at the same time decreased strength of heartbeat,
Yet, the total peripheral resistance changes were and these factors together prevent much of the rise in
almost equal, whether or not the dogs were sympa- arterial pressure that otherwise would occur.
1084 CIRCULATION VOL 64, No 6, DECEMBER 1981
However, during the next 24-72 hours, the barorecep- The Kidney Mechanism for Control of Blood Volume
tors themselves gradually stop sending excess signals and Arterial Pressure: "Pressure Diuresis
to the brain even though the pressure is still high.'0 12 and Pressure Natriuresis"
Therefore, the reflex effects that had been preventing The arterial pressure itself is one of the major
the rise in pressure disappear. As a result, the full factors that affect the rate at which the kidneys excrete
effect of the increased blood volume to increase arte- water and salt. Experiments in hundreds of labora-
rial pressure then becomes manifest. tories have demonstrated that a decrease in arterial
This effect of adaptation of the nervous reflexes to pressure to about 60% of normal decreases the urinary
sensitize the arterial pressure response to changes in output almost to zero.'"-18 On the other hand, an in-
volume is illustrated in figure 5. When the nervous crease in arterial pressure to about 20% above normal
reflexes were operative, the increase in blood volume approximately doubles urinary output, and a doubling
had little effect on arterial pressure. However, in the of arterial pressure increases urinary output an
absence of the reflexes, which is the state that exists average of about sevenfold, both the water output and
after the reflexes have adapted, the same change in salt output participating in these changes. The very
volume increased the arterial pressure eight times as great effect of pressure on water output is called
much.2 pressure diuresis and the effect on salt output is called
Control of Local Blood Flow by the Autoregulation pressure natriuresis.
Mechanism Therefore, when the arterial pressure rises above
normal in the person with normal kidneys, the body
The local ability of each tissue to control its own fluid volumes will continue to decrease until the arte-
blood flow is called autoregulation. Autoregulation is rial pressure returns exactly back to normal.
not instantaneous. In some tissues, such as the Conversely, when the pressure falls below normal the
kidneys, most of the autoregulation response takes kidneys retain water and salt, and this retention occurs
place within less than 30 seconds. In most other until the pressure rises again exactly back to normal.
tissues, the autoregulatory response during the first Thus, the kidneys play a central role in a volume
minute is relatively weak and becomes progressively feedback mechanism for controlling arterial pressure.
more intense with time.'3 14 The initial autoregula- Figure 7 shows changes in cardiac output, arterial
tion is caused by contraction of the smooth muscle pressure, and urinary output after transfusion of blood
walls of the blood vessels when the blood flow is too
great or relaxation when the blood flow is too low. 4000-
However, over a period of weeks and months, actual
structural narrowing or enlargement of blood vessels
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UI-.- 3000-
occurs to return the blood flow back toward nor- < Dc
mal.'5' 19, 20 Thus, by both these means, the local blood
flows seem to be progressively adjusted to the needs of :X o E 2000-
the tissues.
Why does this autoregulatory mechanism make 1000-
volume control of the circulation more sensitive?
When the blood volume increases and this in turn in-
creases arterial pressure and cardiac output, the ini- a-
tial autoregulation in the entire circulation is very ZIFN
E 0m E
slight because some blood vessels are dilated as a
result of the rising pressure at the same time that other
vessels begin to constrict as a result of autoregula-
tion. Therefore, the total peripheral resistance hardly
changes at first.'3 Consequently, the high cardiac out- JLJ
put can persist at least temporarily. Yet, over time,
the autoregulatory response becomes progressively .: W E
cr
enhanced, and the total peripheral resistance increases 75] 1 1
steadily in an attempt to decrease the local blood flows
and the cardiac output back toward normal. However,
as first observed by Markwalder and Starling in 1914,
50 INFUSION PERIOD M Ir-1
0 10 20 30 40 s0 60 120
excess volume keeps the heart pumping an excess car- T I ME (minutes)
diac output despite progressively increasing total
peripheral resistance.2' The increasing total peripheral FIGURE 7. Function of the kidney-blood volume feed-
resistance has only a small effect to decrease the car- back mechanism to return the arterial pressure back to nor-
diac output back toward normal. Instead, it simply mal after transfusion of blood into dogs without nervous
raises the arterial pressure to a higher level. Thus, over reflexes. The transfusion increased the blood volume ap-
a period of days and weeks only a few percent increase proximately 30% and was administered in a period of 4
in volume may increase the cardiac output only a few minutes. The dogs were made areflexic by removing their
percent, but nevertheless increase the arterial pressure heads and injecting their spinal cords with alcohol.
as much as 50%. (Modified from Dobbs WA Jr.22)
CO AND ARTERIAL PRESSURE CONTROL/Guyton 1085
into dogs equal to 30% of their blood volume.22 The thyrotoxicosis cause a chronic decrease in total
nervous reflexes had been blocked so that the full peripheral resistance. At the other extreme, hypo-
effect of the volume could be observed. Note the thyroidism or removal of all four limbs of a person
marked increases in arterial pressure and cardiac out- can caUse a chronic increase in total peripheral re-
put, similar to those in figure 5, but note also the 12- sistance. Yet, the measurements show that in none of
fold increase in urinary output. This excessive urinary these conditions is the arterial pressure abnormal.
output continued as long as the arterial pressure Instead, the cardiac output changes exactly inversely
remained above normal. However, as the arterial to the changes in total peripheral resistance because
pressure returned toward normal, so also did the when the arterial pressure rises above or falls below
urinary output. Thus, this mechanism is an extremely the normal level, the normally functioning kidneys
powerful one to return the arterial pressure all the way will either eliminate fluid from the body or retain fluid
back toward its normal level. This phenomenon is an until the pressure returns back to the original level.
especially important characteristic of this mechanistn This again is a manifestation of the infinite-gain prin-
that is not manifest by any other arterial pressure con- ciple of pressure control by the kidney-volume-
trol system. It is called the principle of "infinite gain" pressure system.
for control of blood pressure by the kidney-volume-
pressure control mechanism.l A Complex Example of Long-term Cardiac Output
Thus, even stnall changes in blood volume are ex- and Arterial Pressure Control: Development
tremely important in long-term control of the arterial of Volume-loading Hypertension
pressure; but far greater changes in volume are re-
quired in short-term control to achieve the same Many experiments have shown that long continua-
results. tion of excess blood volume in a circulatory system
will almost invariably lead to severe hypertension.24-28
Role of Total Peripheral Resistance in the Long-term Ordinarily, though, an excess volume is difficult to
Control of Cardiac Output and Arterial Pressure maintain in the circulation for more than a few hours
because the kidneys are extremely effective in remov-
Although an acute change in total peripheral ing the excess volume. Indeed, the salt and water in-
resistance affects cardiac output and arterial pressure take of a person can be increased to as much as 10-15
about equally (fig.-2), this is not the case when the times normal with no more than a 5-10-mm Hg pres-
total peripheral resistance remains chronically in- sure rise simply because of this vast capacity of the
creased or decreased. Figure 8 shows the effects of kidneys to eliminate the excess water and salt.
long-term total peripheral resistance changes on car- Nevertheless, under special experimental conditions it
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diac output and arterial pressure. This figure was con- is possible to cause long-term volume loading, and this
structed from measurements of arterial pressure and seems always to cause hypertension if all other aspects
cardiac output in many different clinical conditions in of the circulation are normal. Though not all in-
which the total peripheral resistance was chronically vestigators agree on the successive events in the
decreased or chronically increased.28 For instance, development of this volume-loading hypertension, the
such factors as beriberi, A-V shunts, anemia and following analysis fits with the available data.
Figure 9 presents a composite set of curves illus-
trating the hemodynamic changes during the onset of
200
.-.__
typical volume-loading hypertension. These curves
were normalized from several dog experiments in
which the kidney mass was first reduced to approxi-
mately 30% of normal so that the kidneys could not
_P ~150 excrete sodium and water rapidly.24-28 Then, several
c weeks later, at "zero" time, the dogs were placed on a
=
salt intake approximately five to seven times normal.
°00 Immediately, the extracellular fluid volume, blood
volume, mean circulatory filling pressure, pressure
gradient for venous return, and cardiac output all in-
_ creased 20-50%. At the same time, the arterial pres-
=.I sure began to rise, but much more slowly than the
A .. other variables. The reason for this slowness was that
the nervous reflexes decreased the total peripheral
resistance below normal, which nullified much of the
TOTAL PERIPHERAL RESISTANCE (per cent of normal) pressure rise. Yet, over a period of days the nervous
reflexes adapted and thereby became inoperative. At
FIGURE 8. Relationship of different levels of total pe- the same time, the excess cardiac output caused pro-
ripheral resistance to the long-term levels of arterial pres- gressive autoregulatory increase in the vascular
sure and cardiac output in various clinical conditions that resistance throughout the body. These effects - the
cause primary decreases or increases in total peripheral diminution of the reflex effects and the autoregulation
resistance. (Reprinted with permission from Guyton A C.34) - then increased the total peripheral resistance. This
1086 CIRCULATION VOL 64, No 6, DECEMBER 1981
stead, the pressure then changes about 10 times as 3. Cowley AW Jr, Guyton AC: Heart rate as a determinant of car-
much and almost in direct proportion to the changes diac output in dogs with arteriovenous fistula. Am J Cardiol 28:
in sodium intake. Therefore, the renin-angiotensin 321, 1971
system, along with its associated aldosterone system, 4. Guyton AC, Lindsey AW, Abernathy JB, Richardson TQ:
plays an exceedingly'important long-term role in fine- Venous return at various right atrial pressures and the normal
venous return curve. Am J Physiol 189: 609, 1957
tuning the basic hemodynamic pressure control 5. Prather JW, Guyton AC, Taylor AE: Effect of blood volume,
system. mean circulatory pressure, and stress relaxation on cardiac out-
Although circulatory reflexes were emphasized as put. Am J Physiol 216: 467, 1969
extremely important short-term controllers of arte- 6. Barger AC, Richards V, Metcalfe RJ, Gunther B: Regulation
of the circulation during exercise; cardiac output (direct Fick)
rial pressure, they seem to adapt within a few days and and metabolic adjustments in the normal dog. Am J Physiol
therefore probably do not play a significant role in 184: 613, 1956
long-term pressure control. Nevertheless, there are 7. Ashkar E, Hamilton WF: Cardiovascular response to graded
other aspects of nervous control of the circulation exercise in the sympathectomized-vagotomized dog. Am J
besides the reflexes. For instance, minute-by-minute Physiol 204: 291, 1963
8. Barcroft HA, Dornhorst AC, McClatchey HM, Tanner IM:
or hour-by-hour bursts of sympathetic activity often On the blood flow through rhythmically contracting muscle
result from stress situations. Recent experiments have before and during release of sympathetic vasoconstrictor tone. J
illustrated that the hormones released by the sympa- Physiol 117: 391, 1952
thetic nervous system, norepinephrine and epineph- 9. Folkow B: Nervous control of the blood vessels. Physiol Rev
35: 629, 1955
rine, can have not only short-term effects on the 10. McCubbin JW, Green JH, Page IH: Baroreceptor function in
kidneys, but long-term effects as well,38 and these chronic renal hypertension. Circ Res 4: 205, 1956
could easily lead to a long-term increase in the arte- 11. Kezdi P, Wennemark JR: Baroreceptor and sympathetic ac-
rial pressure. tivity in experimental hypertension in the dog. Circulation 17:
Thus, in addition to the basic circulatory hemo- 785, 1958
12. Kreiger EM: Time course of baroreceptor resetting in acute
dynamic and renal hydraulic mechanisms for long- hypertension. Am J Physiol 218: 486, 1970
term control of the circulation, the body has also 13. Granger HF, Guyton AC: Autoregulation of the total systemic
developed still other special mechanisms for fine- circulation following destruction of the central nervous system
tuning the system. When these special mechanisms fail in the dog. Circ Res 25: 379, 1969
14. Wakim KG, Slaughter 0, Clagett OT: Studies on the blood
to function properly, they too can cause clinical ab- flow in the extremities in cases of coarctation of the aorta:
normalities of cardiac output or arterial pressure con- determination before and after excision of the coarctate region.
trol. May Clin Proc 23: 347, 1948
1088 CIRCULATION VOL 64, No 6, DECEMBER 1981
15. Dollery CT, Henbind P, Paterson JW, Romalho PS, Hill DW: 25. Coleman TG, Guyton AC: Hypertension caused by salt load-
Opthalmoscopic and circulatory changes in focal retinal ing in the dog. III. Onset transients of cardiac output and other
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rial pressure decrement on renal clearance of creatinine, p- transient and steady-state hemodynamics of salt-loading
amino hippurate and sodium. Am J Physiol 159: 369, 1949 hypertension in dogs. Circ Res 36: 536, 1975
17. Thompson DD, Pitts RF: Effects of alterations of renal arterial 27. Manning RD Jr, Coleman TG, Guyton AC, Norman RA Jr,
pressure on sodium and water excretion. Am J Physiol 168: McCaa RE: Essential role of mean circulatory filling pressure
490, 1952 in salt-induced hypertension. Am J Physiol 236: R40, 1979
18. Shipley RE, Study RS: Changes in renal blood flow, extraction 28. Manning RD Jr, Guyton AC, Coleman TG, McCaa RE:
of insulin, gomerular filtration rate, tissue pressure, and urine Hypertension in dogs during antidiuretic hormone and hypo-
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Physiol 167: 676, 1951 29. Guyton AC, Batson HM Jr, Smith CM Jr: Adjustments of the
19. Folkow B: The hemodynamic consequences of adaptive struc- circulatory system following very rapid transfusion or
tural changes of the resistance vessels in hypertension. Clin Sci hemorrhage. Am J Physiol 164: 351, 1951
41: 1, 1971 30. Onesti G, Kim KE, Greco JA, del Guercio ET, Fernandes M,
20. Folkow B, Hallbick M, Lundgren Y, Sivertsson R, Weiss L: Schwartz C: Blood pressure regulation in end-stage renal dis-
Importance of adaptive changes in vascular design for estab- ease and anephric man. Circ Res 36 (suppl I): 1-145, 1975
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thesis, University of Mississippi School of Medicine, Jackson, Res 43: 503, 1978
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