The hemodynamics of cardiac tamponade.
The changes produced by acute pericardial tamponade were examined. Tamponade produced the expected hemodynamic alteration; namely, depression on cardiac output, left ventricular pressure and LV dp/dt and elevation of right atrial and intrapericardial pressures. The mechanism of the hemodynamic disturbances was that the elevation of the intrapericardial pressure produced a negative atrial transmural pressure and disturbed atrial and ventricle filling producing the vicious cycle: diminished venoatrial gradient leads to decreased cardiac output leads to attenuated effect of ventricular systole on atrial filling, and so forth. The myocardial contractility was not impaired in cardiac tamponade.
D000818:Animals; D001794:Blood Pressure; D002302:Cardiac Output; D002305:Cardiac Tamponade / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004285:Dogs; D006439:Hemodynamics; D010496:Pericardium / Q000503:physiopathology