A Humoral Influence on Cardiovascular Adjustments to Acute and Chronic Posthemorrhagic Anemia in Dogs

Abstract

The possibility that the increased cardiac output observed in severe anemia is due to a humoral mechanism was investigated by an assay procedure in which blood from anemic donor dogs was infused into normal assay dogs. Blood removed from anemic donors during the period of augmented cardiac output and infused into assay dogs produced cardiovascular changes which were statistically different from the changes observed with infusions of normal blood or blood removed from anemic donors when the cardiac output was not elevated.