Hemorrhagic shock with fixed hypotension and with spontaneous recovery of blood pressure. A comparison of two shock models.

In 26 dogs anesthetized with a barbiturate peripheral blood flow, O2 consumption and acid-base balance have been studied in two kinds of hemorrhagic shock: 1. Hemorrhagic shock with fixed hypotension (hypotensive shock, n = 12) 2. Hemorrhagic shock with spontaneously recovering arterial blood pressure (normotensive shock, n = 14). In both groups the same amount of blood is withdrawn and stored in a reservoir (31-32 ml/kg) to reduce arterial pressure to 40 mm Hg. In hypotensive shock there is a continuous outflow of blood into the reservoir in order to maintain an arterial pressure of 40 mm Hg. After 1 1/2 hours this shift of blood reverses itself spontaneously. In normotensive shock the arterial pressure is allowed to increase after the initial withdrawal of blood. 1 1/2 hours later it reaches a peak of 93 mm Hg after which it starts declining again. The duration of oligemia which the animals control themselves is nearly identical in both groups (4 hours). Both kinds of hemorrhagic shock have a mortality rate of 80%. The survival time is shorter (p less than 0.01) in hypotensive (3 hours) than in normotensive shock (7 1/2 hours). In both kinds of shock heart rate increases to more than 200 beats/min. However, in hypotensive shock it decreases in the late stage of hypovolemia, whereas the increase is continuous in normotensive shock. Cardiac output is significantly higher in the normotensive animals nearly throughout the entire hypovolemic phase although the initial decrease is the same in both groups (71%). Also a greater increase in total peripheral resistance occurs in these animals. The increased cardiac output and total peripheral resistance. A "centralization" of the circulation is also observed in this kind of shock as is made evident by the changes in the relationship between cardiac output and carotid blood flow. Hyperventilation occurs in both kinds of shock. In hypotensive shock respiratory rate decreases at the end of the oligemic phase possibly due to a smaller cerebral blood flow.