====== Cushing reflex ======

The so-called [[Cushing reflex]] has been suggested to explain arterial hypertension. According to this mechanism, [[hypoperfusion]] of the rostroventral [[medulla]] induces sympathetic nervous system activation and a pressor response. The pressor response then increases [[perfusion]] of a primary brain area regulating sympathetic activity, but in doing so heightens systemic blood pressure. The initial hypoperfusion could arise as a result of narrowed vertebral arteries—evident as high resistance and low flow in these arteries. Although systemic hypertension might lead via remodeling to a narrowing of vertebral arteries, it has been suggested that hypertension is the result of narrowed vertebral arteries rather than the cause
((DICKINSON CJ, THOMASON AD. Vertebral and internal carotid arteries in relation
to hypertension and cerebrovascular disease. Lancet. 1959 Jul 18;2(7090):46-8.
PubMed PMID: 13673588.
)).
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Cushing response categorization helps in identifying critical conditions and predicting outcome
((Tsai YH, Lin JY, Huang YY, Wong JM. Cushing response-based warning system for 
intensive care of brain-injured patients. Clin Neurophysiol. 2018 Sep
21;129(12):2602-2612. doi: 10.1016/j.clinph.2018.09.010. [Epub ahead of print]
PubMed PMID: 30453271.
))