Anemia-induced Changes in Cardiac Output in Dogs Treated with Dichloroisoproterenol

The cardiac output of anesthetized dogs was markedly elevated by the production of severe acute anemia by exchanging dextran for blood. Dichloroisoproterenol, in a dose which completely blocked the positive chronotropic effect of epinephrine and several reflexes, usually had minimal effects on the cardiac output. The cardiac responses to acute anemia were not different in the DCI-treated and the control groups. It is concluded that the effect of acute anemia on cardiac output is probably not mediated by the action of adrenergic substances on the heart.