Artery Research

Volume 26, Issue 4, December 2020, Pages 197 - 211

The Human Systemic and Cerebral Circulations: Contrasts in Structure and Function

Authors
Michael O’Rourke1, *, Jonathan Stone2, Audrey Adji1, 3, 4, Mi Ok Kim4, Yan Li5, Ji Guang Wang5, Alberto Avolio4, Per Kristian Eide6, 7, Marek Czosnyka8
1St Vincent’s Hospital/Clinic, UNSW Medicine, Sydney, Australia
2Bosch Institute, Sydney University, Sydney, Australia
3Department of Cardiology, Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, Sydney, Australia
4Faculty of Medicine, Health and Human Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
5The Shanghai Institute of Hypertension, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University of Medicine, Shanghai, China
6Department of Neurosurgery, Oslo University Hospital - Rikshospitalet, Oslo, Norway
7Institute of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
8Cambridge Neuroscience, Addenbrooks Hospital, Cambridge, UK
*Corresponding author. Email: m.orourke@unsw.edu.au
Corresponding Author
Michael O’Rourke
Received 17 March 2020, Accepted 3 July 2020, Available Online 19 July 2020.
DOI
10.2991/artres.k.200704.001How to use a DOI?
Keywords
Wave reflection; reflection coefficient; pressure waves; flow waves; intracranial pressure; pulse wave analysis
Abstract

Apart from peculiarities of the cerebral circulation, required to perfuse the brain with the subject erect, the principles established for function of the human systemic circulation (pulsatile flow at input and steady flow at output in capillaries) are identical to those established for other mammals. Assumption of the erect posture first as Homo erectus, then as Homo sapiens, conferred huge advantage to humans and led to command of the mammalian kingdom. But this required a circulation which could perfuse the brain securely against gravity in all positions of the body. This review covers what presently is known about the human cerebral circulation, and how such knowledge can be applied in some clinical conditions including development of dementia in older subjects, and in management of patients with elevation of intra-cranial pressure in younger subjects.

Copyright
© 2020 Association for Research into Arterial Structure and Physiology. Publishing services by Atlantis Press International B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

Download article (PDF)
View full text (HTML)

Journal
Artery Research
Volume-Issue
26 - 4
Pages
197 - 211
Publication Date
2020/07/19
ISSN (Online)
1876-4401
ISSN (Print)
1872-9312
DOI
10.2991/artres.k.200704.001How to use a DOI?
Copyright
© 2020 Association for Research into Arterial Structure and Physiology. Publishing services by Atlantis Press International B.V.
Open Access
This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC 4.0 license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/).

Cite this article

TY  - JOUR
AU  - Michael O’Rourke
AU  - Jonathan Stone
AU  - Audrey Adji
AU  - Mi Ok Kim
AU  - Yan Li
AU  - Ji Guang Wang
AU  - Alberto Avolio
AU  - Per Kristian Eide
AU  - Marek Czosnyka
PY  - 2020
DA  - 2020/07/19
TI  - The Human Systemic and Cerebral Circulations: Contrasts in Structure and Function
JO  - Artery Research
SP  - 197
EP  - 211
VL  - 26
IS  - 4
SN  - 1876-4401
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2991/artres.k.200704.001
DO  - 10.2991/artres.k.200704.001
ID  - O’Rourke2020
ER  -