VASCULAR

SYSTEM
  The vascular system, also called the circulatory
system, is made up of the vessels that carry
blood and lymph through the body. The arteries
and veins carry blood throughout the body,
delivering oxygen and nutrients to the body tissues
and taking away tissue waste matter.
 The blood vessels carry blood between the heart
and the tissues and organs in the body.
Organs in the vascular system

 The cardiovascular system consists of the heart,

veins, arteries, and capillaries. These components
make up two circulatory systems: the systemic and
pulmonary circulatory systems.
 Systemic circulation transports oxygenated blood
from the heart throughout the body. 
 Pulmonary circulation brings deoxygenated blood
back to the heart.
 Pulmonary circulation moves
blood between the heart and the
lungs. It transports deoxygenated
blood to the lungs to absorb
oxygen and release carbon
dioxide. The oxygenated blood
then flows back to the heart.
 Systemic circulation moves blood
between the heart and the rest of
the body.
FUNCTIONAL CLASSIFICATION
OF BLOOD VESSELS
 Blood vessels are classified into 5 parts:
1) Arteries
2) Arterioles
3) Capillaries
4) Venules
5) Veins
 The arteries branch into smaller and smaller
vessels, eventually becoming very small vessels
called arterioles. Arteries and arterioles have
muscular walls that can adjust their diameter to
increase or decrease blood flow to a particular part
of the body.
 Veins carry blood toward the heart. After blood
passes through the capillaries, it enters the
smallest veins, called venules. From the venules,
it flows into progressively larger and larger veins
until it reaches the heart.
  Arteries carry blood away from your
heart. Veins carry blood back toward your
heart. Capillaries, the smallest blood vessels,
connect arteries and veins.
 Arteries are defined as the blood vessels that carry
oxygenated blood from the heart to the tissues. On
the other hand, veins are defined as the vessels that
carry deoxygenated blood from organs back to the
heart. On the other hand, capillaries are defined as
the smallest vessels that link arteries and veins.
1)ARTERIES
 Transport blood under high pressure
 Have strong vascular walls
 Blood flows at high velocity in arteries
2) ARTERIOLES
 Are the last small branches of arteries
 Act as control conduits through which blood is
released into capillaries
 Have strong muscular walls to control amount of
blood to be released according to need of tissue
3) CAPILLARIES
 Exchange fluid,nutrients,electrolytes & hormones
b/w blood & interstitial fluid
 Walls are thin and have several capillary pores
 Capillary pores are permeable to water and other
small molecular substances
4) VENULES
 Collect blood from capillaries
5) VEINS
 Are passages to transport blood from the venules
back to the heart
 Pressure in venous system is low
 So venous walls are thin but muscular
BLOOD PRESSURE
 Pressure exerted by blood against any unit area of
vessel wall
 Unit for measurement is mm of mercury(mmHg)
 Other less common unit is cm of water
 Measured by two methods:
 Direct method
 Indirect method(by sphygmomanometer)
TYPES OF BLOOD PRESSURE

SYSTOLIC PRESSURE:
 Maximum pressure exerted by blood against
arterial walls
 120 mmHg
DIASTOLIC PRESSURE:
 Minimum pressure exerted by blood against arterial
walls
 80 mmHg
PULSE PRESSURE
 Difference b/w systolic & diastolic pressures is
called is called pulse pressure
 40 mmHg
 Factors that effect pulse pressure are:
 Stroke volume output of heart
 Compliance of arteries
 Pulse pressure is the difference between systolic
and diastolic blood pressure. It is measured in
millimeters of mercury. It represents the force that
the heart generates each time it contracts.
 A normal pulse pressure range is between 40 and
60 mm Hg. A pulse pressure reading is considered
low when it's less than 40 mm Hg. Low pulse
pressure can indicate decreased cardiac output. It's
often observed in people with heart failure.
 The top number (systolic) minus the bottom
number (diastolic) is the pulse pressure. For
example, if the resting blood pressure is 120/80
millimeters of mercury (mm Hg), the pulse
pressure is 40 — which is considered a healthy
pulse pressure. Generally, a pulse pressure greater
than 40 mm Hg is unhealthy.
 The heart rate records the number of times that
your heart beats per minute, while your blood
pressure quantifies how strong your blood
moves through the blood vessels
Stroke volume
 Stroke volume is the volume of blood pumped out of the left
ventricle of the heart during each systolic cardiac contraction.
 Stroke volume is the amount of blood ejected from the ventricle
with each cardiac cycle. It can be readily calculated by subtracting
the end-systolic volume from the end-diastolic volume. Multiplying
the stroke volume by the heart rate yields the cardiac output,
typically reported in liters per minute.
 Cardiac output is the product of heart rate (HR) and stroke
volume (SV) and is measured in liters per minute. HR is most
commonly defined as the number of times the heart beats in one
minute. SV is the volume of blood ejected during ventricular
contraction or for each stroke of the heart.
RESISTANCE
 Is the impediment to blood flow in a vessel
 Cannot be measured directly
 Calculated by measuring pressure difference b/w
two points & measuring blood flow
 If pressure difference is 1mmHg and blood flow is
1 ml than resistance is 1 peripheral resistance unit
HEMATOCRIT
 %age of blood that is in cells is called hematocrit
 Viscosity of blood increases as hematocrit
increases
 As in polycythemia
HYPERTENSION
 Sustained high blood pressure is called
hypertension
 Blood pressure equal to or greater than
140/90mmHg,at least two readings on separate
occasions
ETIOLOGY
PRIMARY HYPERTENSION:
 Also called essential hypertension
 Usually onset occurs b/w 25 – 55yrs
 No specific cause
 95% is primary hypertension
PRECIPITATING FACTORS:
 Genetic predispoisition
 Obesity,lack of exercise
 Excessive salt intake
 Cigarette smoking
 Sympathetic overactivity
SECONDARY HYPERTENSION:
 Accounts for about 5%
 Hypertension is secondary to some systemic cause
in body
 Causes are:
Renal diseases
Renal vascular disease
Renal parenchymal disease(glomerulonephritis)
 Endocrine diseases:
Hyperparathyroidism
Thyrotoxicosis
Pheochromocytoma
 Drugs

Corticosteroids
NSAIDs
Sympathomimetic agents
CLINICAL FEATURES
Mostly asymptomatic
 Headache

 Nausea

 Somnolence

 confusion
TREATMENT
 GENERAL MEASURES:
 Weight reduction
 Salt restriction
 Avoid stress etc.
 DRUG THERAPY:
 Antihypertensive drugs
 Diuretics
 Beta blockers
 Calcium channel blockers