An introduction to cardiovascular physiology

This is an introductory text designed primarily for students of medicine and physiology. The author shows how knowledge of the circulation is derived from experimental observations. Human data are presented where possible, and their relevance to human disease is emphasized. The traditional weighting of subject matter has been re-thought, resulting in a fuller account of microvascular physiology. This reflects the explosion of microvascular research over the last two decades. Even setting aside these advances, it seems self-evident that the culminating, fundamental function of the cardiovascular system, the transfer of nutrients from plasma to the tissue, merits more than the half-a-dozen lines usually accorded to it in introductory texts. Major advances continue apace in other fields too, for example the elucidation of the biochemical events underlying Starling's law of the heart; the discovery of new vasoactive substances produced by endothelium: the exploration of non-adrenergic, non-cholinergic neurotransmission; rapid advances in vascular smooth muscle physiology; and new concepts of how the central nervous control of the circulation is organized Content: Front Matter , Page iii Copyright , Page iv Preface , Page v Chapter 1 - Overview of the cardiovascular system , Pages 1-12 Chapter 2 - Cardiac cycle , Pages 13-22 Chapter 3 - Cardiac excitation and contraction , Pages 23-44 Chapter 4 - Electrocardiography , Pages 45-54 Chapter 5 - Assessment of cardiac output , Pages 55-61 Chapter 6 - Control of stroke volume and cardiac output , Pages 62-89 Chapter 7 - Haemodynamics: pressure, flow and resistance , Pages 90-116 Chapter 8 - Solute transport between blood and tissue , Pages 117-141 Chapter 9 - Circulation of fluid between plasma, interstitium and lymph , Pages 142-170 CHAPTER 10 - Vascular smooth muscle , Pages 171-177 Chapter 11 - Control of blood vessels , Pages 178-202 Chapter 12 - Specialization in individual circulations , Pages 203-223 Chapter 13 - Cardiovascular receptors, reflexes and central control , Pages 224-242 Chapter 14 - Coordinated cardiovascular responses , Pages 243-254 Chapter 15 - Cardiovascular responses in pathological situations , Pages 255-266 Technical appendix , Pages 267-269 Index , Pages 271-279 An Introduction to Cardiovascular Physiology is designed primarily for students of medicine and physiology. This introductory text is mostly didactic in teaching style and it attempts to show that knowledge of the circulatory system is derived from experimental observations. This book is organized into 15 chapters. The chapters provide a fuller account of microvascular physiology to reflect the explosion of microvascular research and include a discussion of the fundamental function of the cardiovascular system involving the transfer of nutrients from plasma to the tissue. They also cover major advances in cardiovascular physiology including biochemical events underlying Starling's law of the heart, nonadrenergic, non-cholinergic neurotransmission, the discovery of new vasoactive substances produced by endothelium and the novel concepts on the organization of the central nervous control of the circulation. This book is intended to medicine and physiology students. This extensively revised fourth edition provides coverage from basic outlines of the fundamental principles of how the cardiovascular system works in health and disease through to more advanced physiological mechanisms and intracellular transduction pathways. The updated text incorporates the major advances int he field since the first edition, whild retaining the original balance and style. New sections include the contribution of wave reflection to systolic hypertension and the role of kinases in vascular contraction, while increased coverage of myocardial ischaemia and advances in understanding cardiac failure and arrhythmogenesis enhance the clinical relevance of the text.