Effects of alpha -adrenergic blockade during acute anemia

Studies were carried out in seven anesthetized paralyzed dogs to examine the importance of alpha -adrenergic tone in the cardiovascular responses during acute anemia. Data were obtained 1) at normal hematocrit (Hct), 2) during anemia produced by isovolemic hemodilution with dextran (Hct, 13-15%), 3) during anemia after alpha -blockade (alpha -bl) with phenoxybenzamine (3 mg/kg), and 4) following volume expansion during anemia with a red blood cell dextran solution. Cardiac output (QT), limb and total body oxygen uptake (VO2), and limb blood flow (QL) were determined. Both QT and QL increased during anemia (P less than 0.01), whereas limb resistance (RL) and total peripheral resistance (TPR) were decreased (P less than 0.01). No further change in either RL or TPR occurred with alpha -blockade anemia, but both QT and QL decreased (P less than 0.01). Whole-body VO2 increased during anemia and then declined with alpha -bl and anemia. Following volume expansion during anemia with alpha -bl, QT, QL, and whole-body VO2 increased. We conclude that alpha -adrenergic sympathetic tone to capacitance vessels is essential for the cardiac output increased during anemia, but has little or no effect on resistance vessels and hence distribution of peripheral blood flow.