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Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine pp 1–2Cite as

Baroreceptors

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Definition

Baroreceptors are mechanoreceptors that contribute to the autonomic regulation of blood pressure. Baroreceptors can be divided into the arterial baroreceptors, primarily involved in the short-term regulation of blood pressure, and the cardiopulmonary baroreceptors, which react to changes in blood volume or central venous pressure.

Arterial baroreceptors, situated in the aortic arch and carotid sinus, increase their afferent output in response to distension of the arterial wall caused by increases in blood pressure within the vessel. They are sensitive to absolute pressure and rate of change of pressure, both of which vary over the cardiac cycle. The arrival of the pulse pressure wave at the baroreceptors causes distension of the vessel wall and generates pulse synchronous afferent firing that is maximal during early systole (Eckberg and Sleight 1992).

The afferent traffic from the arterial baroreceptors provides the primary input to the baroreflex mechanism, which maintains...

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References and Further Reading

  • Berntson, G. G., & Cacioppo, J. T. (2007). Integrative physiology: Homeostasis, allostasis, and the orchestration of systemic physiology. In J. T. Cacioppo, L. G. Tassinary, & G. G. Berntson (Eds.), Handbook of psychophysiology (pp. 433–451). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

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  • Eckberg, D. L., & Sleight, P. (1992). Human baroreflexes in health and disease. Oxford: Clarendon Press.

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  • Jordan, D. (1995). Central nervous integration of cardiovascular regulation. In D. Jordan & J. M. Marshall (Eds.), Cardiovascular regulation (pp. 1–14). London: The Physiological Society.

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  • Marshall, J. M. (1995). Cardiovascular changes associated with behavioural alerting. In D. Jordan & J. M. Marshall (Eds.), Cardiovascular regulation (pp. 37–59). London: The Physiological Society.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, The University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK

    David McIntyre

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  1. David McIntyre
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Correspondence to David McIntyre .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, FL, USA

    Marc Gellman

Section Editor information

  1. School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK

    Anna C. Whittaker (previously Phillips)

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McIntyre, D. (2019). Baroreceptors. In: Gellman, M. (eds) Encyclopedia of Behavioral Medicine. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_857-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6439-6_857-2

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-6439-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6439-6

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