HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY

Objective

1. To determine the blood pressure and heart rate in different conditions

2. To determine the human respiratory volume

Introduction

Physiology is the study of normal function within living creatures. It is a sub-section of

biology, covering a range of topics that include organs, anatomy, cells, biological compounds,
and how they all interact to make life possible.

The human body has a very complex multiple control system, where the cell of the body and
the brain can influence the circulatory pattern of blood. The changes in total blood flow are
reflected in the heart rate and arterial pressure. Blood pressure can be easily measured
provided with the suitable equipment. Systolic blood pressure is when the heart beats, it
squeezes and pushes the blood through the arteries to the rest of the body. The force will
create the systolic pressure on the blood vessels. Diastolic blood pressure on the other hand,
is when the heart rests between beats, it is filled with blood to gain oxygen. In general,
systolic blood pressure is the pumping of blood from the heart to the rest of the body and the
diastolic blood pressure is the filling of blood from the body to the heart to get oxygen. The
pulse pressure is related to the amount of blood being pumped per eat. It is the systolic minus
the diastolic pressure.

In this experiment, the blood pressure of a human subject will be measured using a blood
pressure sensor that is prepared in the laboratory. This blood pressure will be taken two times,
before and after being exposed to cold. The cold stimulus will activate the sympathetic
nervous system, which results in hemodynamic change that prepares the body for a “fight or
flight” response. The sensitivity of the blood pressure to harmful external or internal injuries
makes it useful as a vital sign for the indicator of health, excitement, disease and stress.

The respiratory volumes are also examined using the spirometer. The total capacity of the
lungs is divided into various volumes and capacities according to the function of these in the
intake or exhalation of air. The total amount of air one’s lung can possible hold can be
subdivided into four volumes, as shown in the figure below.
Apparatus and materials

Blood pressure sensor, cold water, spirometer

Procedures

A. Blood pressure as a vital sign

1. The subject was sat in a chair quietly with their forearm resting on a table surface.
2. The blood pressure and heart rate was checked by using the Blood Pressure sensor and
was written down in a table.
3. The supine blood pressure and heart rate was checked and written down in a table.
4. The subject was asked to do continuous squats for one minute, The blood pressure (B)
and heart rate was then taken immediately, for every 1 minute up to 5 minutes and was
written down in a table.
B. Human respiratory volume
1. Tidal volume (TV)
A) The spirometer dial was set to zero (0). After taking a normal inspiration, the mouth-
piece was placed upon the subject’s mouth and a normal expiration was exhaled into
the spirometer. Conscious effort was made by the subject to not exceed their normal
value.
B) The amount exhaled on the dial was read and written in a table.
C) The respiratory rate per minute was counted by counting the respiratory cycle for 1
minute while the subject was still at seated at the chair.
D) To calculate the resting respiratory minute volume, the tidal volume was multiplied
by the respiratory rate per minute.
2. Expiratory Reserve Volume (ERV)
A) The spirometer dial was set to zero (0).
B) After a normal expiration, the mouth-piece was placed inside the subject’s mouth and
forcefully exhaled as much air as possible into the spirometer.
3. Vital Capacity (VC)
A) The spirometer dial was set at zero (0).
B) Subject was asked to inhale as deeply as possible. A mouthpiece was then placed in
the subject’s mouth while their nose was held and exhaled into the spirometer with
maximum effort.
C) The measurement was repeated 3 times and the largest volume was recorded in the
table.
4. Inspiratory Reserve Volume (IRV) and Inspiration Capacity (IC)
A) The IRV and IC was calculated from the 3 previous volume measurements.

Results

A. Blood pressure as a vital sign

Table 1. Blood pressure and heart rate readings

Systolic Diastolic Mean arterial Heart rate

Pressure Pressure pressure (beats/min)
(mmHg) (mmHg) (mmHg)
Sitting on chair 119 72 88 76
Supine (laying 133 70 91 73
on back)

Table 2. Blood pressure and heart rate readings response to continuous squats

Systolic Diastolic Mean arterial Heart rate

Pressure Pressure pressure (beats/min)
(mmHg) (mmHg) (mmHg)
Min 1 146 79 94 128
Min 2 124 76 92 117
Min 3 117 74 88 112
Min 4 131 75 94 107
Min 5 116 81 93 104
 Table 3. Blood pressure and heart rate readings response to cold water

Systolic Diastolic Mean arterial Heart rate

Pressure Pressure pressure (beats/min)
(mmHg) (mmHg) (mmHg)
30 second 124 61 82 82
60 second 111 61 78 87
90 second 108 58 75 85
120 second 106 58 74 81
150 second 103 51 68 86
180 second 108 53 71 82

B. Human respiratory volume

Table 4. Respiratory volumes

Respiratory volumes Value (mL)

Tidal volume (TV) 217.5
Inspiratory Reserve Volume (IRV) 632.5
Expiratory Reserve Volume (ERV) 3050.0
Residual Volume (RV) 1200.0
Total Lung Capacity (TLC) 5100.0
Vital Capacity (VC) 3900.0
Functional Residual Capacity (FRC) 4250.0
Inspiratory Capacity (IC) 850.0

TV=1450 X 9/60

=217.5mL

IRV=VC-(TV+ERV)

=3900-(217.5+3050)

=3050mL

IC=IRV+TV

=632.5+217.5
 =850mL

FRC=RV+ERV

=1200+3050

=4250mL

TLC=TV+IRV+ERV+RV

=217.5+632.5=3050+1200

=5100mL

Discussion

A. Blood pressure as a vital sign

When using the blood pressure sensor, the subject was advised to sit still as any involuntary
movement would hinder the measurement of the systolic pressure, diastolic pressure and
heart rate. The same rules are applied also when the subject is lying on their back on the floor.
From table 1, it can be observed that the systolic pressure of the subject is higher when they
are lying on their back of 133mmHg in comparison to the when they are sitting on a chair
which is only 119mmHg. In contrast, the diastolic pressure when sitting down is 72 mmHg,
which is higher than the supine position which is only 70 mmHg. Using the equation mean
arterial pressure = (systolic pressure + diastolic pressure X 2) / 3, the mean arterial pressure is
calculated. From the table, the mean arterial pressure is 88 mmHg when sitting down, making
it higher than when in supine position which is 91 mmHg. The heart rate when sitting down is
higher at 76 beats/ min when compared to the supine position at only 73 beats/ min. There is
an error in the value of the systolic pressure and mean arterial pressure for supine position
because it is supposed to be lower than the sitting down position, as evident by the diastolic
pressure, heart rate being lower than when sitting down. This is because the
blood pressure level is supposed to be lower while measured in lying position and is higher
when measured in sitting position due to the heart needing to pump for supplying blood to
brain. While lying down it require less work to pump and the head is in similar level of heart
and that’s why blood pressure level is low. At the time of sitting their head is lot higher and
need to work harder to supply blood to the brain, causing the blood pressure to be higher.

For the first activity, the subject had done continuous squats for one minute and then their
heart beat and blood pressure was measured in intervals of 1 minute until the minute five.
From table 2, it can be seen that the systolic pressure is very high initially due to the need of
the body to supply oxygen to the body to compensate the loss of it because of the exercise
they had just done. The systolic pressure continued to decrease until it was back to normal
conditions. The exception is at minute 4, where the systolic pressure jumped up from 117
mmHg at minute 3 to 131mmHg. This might be because the subject might have talk during
the measurement making the value go higher or because it is going starting to back to the
normal condition. The same could be said for the trend in diastolic pressure and mean arterial
pressure as it also deceases the longer the time went on, with the exception of diastolic
pressure at minute 3, where it started increasing as the minutes passed, probably due to the
breathing going back to normal. The heart beat decreases as the minutes passed by as well.
The blood pressure and heart beat was high because when exercising, many muscles all
require nutrients and elimination of waste products constantly at the same time and to meet
this demand the heart must rapidly increase the rate at which it beats and pushes blood
through the body. This is why the heart beats significantly faster during exercise and still is
after a minute.

For the second activity, the subject held a cup of cold ice water for several minutes to see the
response the blood pressure and heart beat to the contact. As can be seen from table 3, the
systolic pressure, diastolic pressure, mean arterial pressure and heart beat decreases as time
passed on. This is because of the cold stimulus will activate the sympathetic nervous system,
resulting in hemodynamic change that prepares the body for a “fight or flight” response.

B. Human respiratory volume

From the table, the tidal wave of the subject is 217.5 mL, which is much lower than the
average of 500 mL. This might be due to human error of calculation or counting number of
time respiration occurs. The inspiratory reserve volume is 632.5 mL, the expiratory reserve
volume is 3050 mL, with the residual volume being 1200mL. The total lung capacity is
5100mL, which is lower than an average adult male which has 6000mL. The vital capacity is
also 3900ml which is still lower than standard that a 19 year old and 174 cm male should be,
which is about 4440 mL. The functional residual capacity is 4250mL and the subject’s
inspiratory capacity 850.0mL. This all implies that the subject does do exercises on a regular
interval since respiratory volumes that are listed on the table are lower than an average male.

Conclusion

The blood pressure and heart rate is different in various conditions, whether it be position,
temperature or even during exercise. When one is in contact with cold water, their blood
pressure and heart rate will drop and when lying down on one’s back, their heart rate and
blood pressure is lower than sitting down due to their position. After exercising, a person’s
blood pressure and heart rate will sharply increase. The human respiratory volume of the
subject is much lower than the average adult male should be, meaning the respiratory volume
differs from person to person.

References

1. https://www.livestrong.com/article/108483-factors-affect-heart-rate-/