Open AccessCoronary Microcirculation in Health and Disease
Author(s) -
William M. Chilian
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
circulation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 7.795
H-Index - 607
eISSN - 1524-4539
pISSN - 0009-7322
DOI - 10.1161/01.cir.95.2.522
Subject(s) - microcirculation , medicine , coronary circulation , cardiology , coronary heart disease , blood flow , coronary atherosclerosis , cardiovascular health , intensive care medicine , disease , pathology
This article summarizes a 2-day workshop on the coronary microcirculation held in Bethesda, Md, in September 1994 and sponsored by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health. The workshop explored a variety of topics pertaining to coronary microvascular physiology and pathophysiology. The latest methodologies that are being used to investigate the coronary microvasculature, including endoscopic microscopy of the intramural coronary microvasculature and micro-x-ray computerized tomography, were discussed. The most recent advances in the regulation of the coronary microcirculation-for example, myogenic and flow-dependent responses, KATP channels, and regional heterogeneity-were reported. The workshop touched on the relation of the microcirculation to clinically important conditions and offered recommendations for future research in this important area. Comparisons are made to recent advances in the peripheral circulation and current gaps in our knowledge concerning the coronary microcirculation. In recent years, research on the coronary microcirculation has made substantial advances, in part as a result of investigations in the peripheral microcirculation but also because of the application of unique methodologies. This research is providing new ways to investigate abnormalities of myocardial perfusion, an area of inquiry that until recently has been limited to examination of coronary pressure-flow relationships.