III. The Full Cardiovascular Model

The previous exercises looked at the impact of the various parameters of ventricular performance on the left ventricle alone. The "full model" places the left ventricle back into the circulatory loop (where it belongs!). The major difference is that changes in a single parameter will now affect other parameters. For example, by changing left ventricular afterload, the output of the ventricle is reduced, thus reducing venous return to the heart and hence also reducing preload! You should explore how changing clinically relevant parameters (such as blood volume, heart rate, vascular resistance, etc.) affect overall cardiovascular function (such as systemic blood pressure, cardiac output, filling pressures, etc.).