AJP - Heart and Circulatory Physiology, Vol 244, Issue 2 178-H185, Copyright © 1983 by American Physiological Society
Influence of central nervous system on arterial pressure during endotoxin shock
H. F. Janssen and L. O. Lutherer
Some investigators have suggested that the hypotensive effects of endotoxin
are exerted at the level of central nervous system (CNS). Others feel the
effects are exerted peripherally and that the CNS is involved in the
regulation of the cardiovascular system during the shock state. Still other
data suggest that endotoxin shock is entirely a peripheral phenomenon. The
present study used ventriculocisternal perfusion of endotoxin, a
pretrigeminal brainstem transection, two midcollicular decerebrate
preparations, and Cushing's reflex to investigate the involvement of the
CNS during endotoxin shock. The results suggest the following: 1) endotoxin
perfused centrally at a concentration equivalent to the maximum obtainable
after peripheral injection will not alter mean arterial pressure (MAP); 2)
either the forebrain is not involved in the MAP response or the remaining
regions can compensate for its absence; and 3) Cushing's reflex will block
the initial endotoxin-induced hypotension.
