Experiments with volume overload in SHR/Frid and WKY/Frid

Heart rate, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, and left ventricular pressure were continuously measured in volume overload experiments with SHR and WKY rats. The index for contractility dp/dtmax was determined. The initial data and the changes during overload are tabulated and compared between the strains. Overload led to a marked increase of the end-diastolic left ventricular pressure in WKY rats. The SHR overload model reacts less to the standard drug Dopamine than the normotensive strain. It combines chronic hypertension with acute volume overload and is suitable for circulation basic research and special screening experiments with prospective new cardiovascular drugs. It is bound to a high technical and preparative expenditure.