title: Importance of left atrial baroreceptors in the cardiopulmonary baroreflex of normal humans.
abstract: In animals, sympathetic responses to orthostasis are regulated in part by cardiopulmonary afferents arising from atrial and ventricular baroreceptors. To determine the relative importance of these baroreceptor regions in the cardiopulmonary baroreflex of normal humans, simultaneous measurements of left atrial and right and left ventricular volumes (cine computed tomography), invasive hemodynamics, forearm vascular resistance (plethysmography), and efferent sympathetic nerve activity to muscle (microneurography) were obtained under control conditions and with nonhypotensive lower body negative pressure (-10 mmHg, LBNP-10) in nine normal human subjects. LBNP-10 did not alter heart rate or mean systemic arterial pressure, but it did produce significant decreases in pulmonary artery diastolic and right atrial pressures. This reduction in cardiac filling pressures resulted in efferent sympathoexcitation evidenced by increases in forearm vascular resistance and efferent sympathetic nerve activity to the muscle. LBNP-10 did not alter end-diastolic volume of the left or the right ventricle. Similarly, ventricular stroke volume was unchanged during LBNP-10, as assessed by cine computed tomography or thermodilution techniques. In contrast, LBNP-10 resulted in a significant decrease in left atrial volume. Thus, LBNP produced a significant decrease in cardiac filling pressures and left atrial volumes with resultant reflex sympathoexcitation, whereas ventricular volumes were unchanged. These observations suggest an important role for left atrial (nonventricular) baroreceptor afferents in the cardiopulmonary baroreflex of normal humans.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City 52242.
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Oren
authors.forename: H P
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Schobel
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Weiss
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Stanford
authors.forename: D W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Ferguson
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D016275:Atrial Function; D005260:Female; D006321:Heart / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology*; D006325:Heart Atria / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006801:Humans; D008150:Lower Body Negative Pressure; D008297:Male; D011311:Pressoreceptors / Q000502:physiology*; D012018:Reflex / Q000502:physiology*; D013564:Sympathetic Nervous System / Q000502:physiology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016276:Ventricular Function