Tissue blood flow and the sympathomimetic amines

In the arteries, blood flow and blood pressure are pulsatile in nature (Roston, 1962a; Roston 1962b). The patterns of blood movement and mural distension in the arteries are important because they may be associated with life-threatening degenerative changes in the arterial walls. As the vascular channels narrow, the pulsation decreases. At the level of the capillaries, almost no pulsation exists (Best and Taylor, 1961). The tissues are affected by the direct flow in the capillaries and not by the pulsation in the arteries. Thus, such quantities as pulse pressure, systolic pressure, and diastolic pressure which characterize blood movement in the arteries are not important as far as the tissues are concerned. Rather, the average pressure and flow in the capillaries are the quantities significant for tissue blood flow. The present study analyzes the local blood circulation in a typical tissue. Logical extension of this analysis results in insights into the physiological behavior of the circulation which integrate a considerable body of experimental data.