Hepatic Capacitance Vessel Responses to Bilateral Carotid Occlusion in Anesthetized Cats

Abstract

Hepatic volume was recorded by a plethysmographic technique in cats anesthetized with pentobarbital; the hepatic artery and portal vein remained intact. The mean change in hepatic blood volume during bilateral carotid occlusion was less than 2% and there was no significant difference between responses in innervated and denervated livers. These results, together with other reports in the literature, support the conclusion that capacitance vessel responses, a redistribution of blood volume, a change in cardiac output, and release of catecholamines from the adrenal medullae do not occur in arterial baroreceptor reflex responses.