The effect of hypovolaemic (stagnant) and arterial hypoxia on the distribution of cardiac output in dogs and rats

Abstract

In previous experiments performed at our department, the circulation of the heart [Takacs (1)], kidney [Gomori, Kovach, Takacs, Foldi, Szabo, Nagy, and Wiltner (2), Takacs and Kallay (3, 4)], and hind extremities [Takacs (5)] of dogs was compared under various conditions of hypovolaemic (stagnant) and arterial hypoxia. Though in ischaemic or traumatic shock and in dehydration a low cardiac output may be observed, and in arterial hypoxia (art. saturation about 60 per cent) an elevated cardiac output, a similar redistribution of the cardiac output was established in both instances, i.e. the coronary fraction of the cardiac output increased while the renal and limb fractions decreased (Fig. 1). We assumed that tissue hypoxia would probably produce similar alterations in the distribution of the cardiac output in dogs.