Pulmonary release of ET-1 during surgical procedures involving right ventricular pressure overload contributes to postoperative mesenteric vascular dysfunction

Objectives: We hypothesized that during acute right ventricular pressure overload (RVPO) hemodynamic perturbations and their consequences may develop in the peripheral vascular territories with weak autoregulation – namely, mesenteric bed – despite the absence of any central systemic circulatory perturbation. Methods: The systolic right ventricular pressure was increased in 7 dogs from 28.3±2.8 to 56.2±5.3mmHg and kept constant for 60 minutes (51.3±7.8mmHg; p