Blood Volume

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Abstract
It appears unlikely that any single, reasonably simple concept or mechanism can account for the regulation of the volume of the blood. Blood volume, as well as the size of the circulatory system, seems to be ultimately linked to the over-all metabolic functions of the organism. The essential role of blood volume appears to be that of keeping the system adequately distended in order to insure the maintenance of the venous return. Potent reflex mechanisms for adjusting the capacity of the venous system within wide limits obviously provide a considerable margin of safety against sudden changes in volume as well as a means for large alterations in venous return, independent of changes in blood volume. Thus, regulation of blood volume evidently assumes a secondary position, subservient to regulation of venous return and volume flow of blood. This is in accord with the general concept which was emphasized in the discussion of normal values, that blood volume is, in the final analysis, somehow determined by the functional demands imposed on the circulation. If the ultimate control lies in metabolic processes, is it sufficient to assume that volume control mechanisms are activated solely by disturbances in the blood volume itself, as postulated by a simple feed-back mechanism or the volume receptor concept? Perhaps volume control actions are also activated by chemoreceptor mechanisms that monitor discrepancies in supply and demand for blood and which so far have not been considered in relation to regulation of volume.
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