What is the role of the aorta in determining coronary blood flow?
Justin E Davies 1*, Kim H Parker 2, Darrel P Francis 1, Alun D Hughes 1 and Jamil Mayet 1
1 International Centre for Circulatory Health, St Mary's Hospital & Imperial College London, United Kingdom
2 Imperial College London, United Kingdom
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: justindavies{at}heart123.com.
Accepted 10 June 2008
 | Abstract |
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Paradoxically the heart, which is solely dedicated to supplying blood to the organs, restricts its own blood supply during peak contraction (Figure 1). To overcome this restriction, the heart has numerous mechanisms which delicately balance the blood flow demands of the systemic and coronary circulation.
