Editing Baroreceptor (section)

{{Short description|Sensors detecting blood pressure}}
'''Baroreceptors''' (or archaically, '''pressoreceptors''') are [[stretch receptor]]s that sense [[blood pressure]]. Thus, increases in the pressure of blood vessel triggers increased [[action potential]] generation rates and provides information to the [[central nervous system]]. This sensory information is used primarily in [[autonomic nervous system|autonomic reflexes]] that in turn influence the heart [[cardiac output]] and vascular smooth muscle to influence vascular resistance.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Heesch|first=C. M.|date=December 1999|title=Reflexes that control cardiovascular function|journal=The American Journal of Physiology|volume=277|issue=6 Pt 2|pages=S234–243|issn=0002-9513|pmid=10644250|doi=10.1152/advances.1999.277.6.S234|s2cid=21912789 }}</ref> Baroreceptors act immediately as part of a [[negative feedback]] system called the [[baroreflex]]<ref>Stanfield, CL; Germann, WJ. (2008) Principles of Human Physiology, Pearson Benjamin Cummings. 3rd edition, pp.427.</ref> as soon as there is a change from the usual [[Mean arterial pressure|mean arterial blood pressure]], returning the pressure toward a normal level. These reflexes help regulate short-term blood pressure. The [[solitary nucleus]] in the [[medulla oblongata]] of the brain recognizes changes in the firing rate of action potentials from the baroreceptors, and influences cardiac output and systemic vascular resistance.

Baroreceptors can be divided into two categories based on the type of blood vessel in which they are located: high-pressure arterial baroreceptors and low-pressure baroreceptors (also known as cardiopulmonary<ref>Levy, MN; Pappano, AJ. (2007) Cardiovascular Physiology, Mosby Elsevier. 9th edition, pp.172.</ref> or volume receptors<ref name="Stanfield, CL 2008 pp.430-431">Stanfield, CL; Germann, WJ. (2008) Principles of Human Physiology, Pearson Benjamin Cummings. 3rd edition, pp.430-431.</ref>).