Abstract
Summary
The reactive hyperemic response of the intestinal vasculature to graded arterial occlusion is often used to delineate mechanisms involved in the intrinsic regulation of intestinal blood flow. This study assesses if the reactive hyperemic response to 60- and 120-sec arterial occlusions occur uniformly throughout the wall of the small intestine. Radiolabeled microsphere injections were used to determine blood flow distribution in the mucosa-submucosa and muscu-laris layers of the small intestine under control conditions and during 60- and 120-sec arterial occlusion. The results of this study suggest that relatively uniform increases in intestinal wall blood flow occurs only for an occlusion period of 60 sec. Increasing the duration of the arterial occlusion to 120 sec results in a predominant hyperemia in the muscularis layer.
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