Reflex stimulation of heart induced by partial occlusion of pulmonary artery

Abstract

In anesthetized dogs, partial occlusion of the pulmonary artery causes increased pulmonary blood flow which is dependent on an intact sympathetic innervation of the heart. Neither the vagi nor the medullary centers participate in the increase in pulmonary blood flow. The most probable explanation is that the increase in pulmonary blood flow is due to reflex cardiac stimulation initiated by a rise in right ventricular systolic pressure and mediated entirely by the cardiac sympathetic nerves.