Responses of cerebral arterioles to increased venous pressure.

The responses of pial arterioles to increased venous pressure were studied in anesthetized cats equipped with cranial windows for the observation of the pial microcirculation. Stable increases in venous pressure consistently induced arteriolar vasodilation, which averaged 6-12% of the control diameter. The vasodilation occurred when arterial blood pressure was normal and during arterial hypotension induced by bleeding; it also occurred irrespective of whether intracranial pressure was kept constant or was allowed to increase venous hypertension. The results are consistent with the view that autoregulatory adjustments in caliber of pial arterioles are mediated predominantly by metabolic rather than myogenic mechanisms.