Cardiovascular System Lab

Introduction: The cardiovascular system has multiple components that work to ensure an enough oxygen is supplied to the muscles, both at rest and during exercise. The objective of this laboratory session was to measure, and compare how the cardiovascular system responds to dynamic and isometric exercise. The research question for this lab was “What is the effect of different exercise modalities on the cardiovascular system?”. In response to this research question, the following hypothesis was formed. During Dynamic exercise the HR, SV, Q, SBP would increase, while the TPR and DBP would decrease, and during isometric exercise the TPR, HR, Q, SBP, SV would increase, while the DBP would decrease. Methods: To assess the cardiovascular response to
An increase in heart rate causes an increase in venous return, allowing more blood to be pumped; consequently, increasing the SV. The sole error in the dynamic portion of the hypothesis was that it was predicted that diastolic blood pressure (DBP), would fall with dynamic exercise. Although the DBP did not rise, it stayed the same as when the subject was at rest. The reason DBP stays the same or falls in dynamic exercise is because during dynamic exercise, arteries dilate, reducing blood pressure. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) rises due to more blood being pumped into circulation, which increases the volume of blood in the arteries, thus increasing pressure. When the arteries dilate in dynamic exercise they also cause the total peripheral resistance (TPR), to decrease. The drop in diastolic blood pressure and rise in cardiac output causes the TPR to decrease. With less pressure and more output, the resistance within the cardiac circuit naturally goes down. In regards to the isometric exercise, the hypothesis was correct in that TPR, HR, Q, SBP, and DBP