What is Carotid Sinus? - An Outline of What is Carotid Sinus

In medical terms on what is carotid sinus? The answer is "A dilated area located at the bifurcations of the carotid arteries and containing numerous baroreceptors that function in the control of blood pressure by mediating changes in the heart rate".

If this terminology on what is carotid sinus confuses you then here it is. The carotid arteries are contained at the level of the neck and they are responsible to distribute blood at the plane of the head. In easy language it is a slight expansion in carotid artery where it is divided into internal and external artery, the former carries blood to the brain and the latter to the face. It contains baroreceptors (pressure sensors) which is sensitive to pressure. These when stimulated causes falling of heart beat and decrease in blood pressure thereby the flow of blood to the brain is reduced. This situation causes loss of muscle tone and it becomes difficult to stand straight and causes you to fall. Due to the restricted flow to the brain, it leads to giddiness, but unlike the usual giddiness, they do not start with nausea, paleness and sweating. They reduce the heart beat and pressure in the arteries. It lasts only for few seconds or minutes.

Carotid sinus is otherwise called tight-collar syndrome. In simple terminology it causes brief unconsciousness due to damaged flow of blood to the brain.

A wrestler with his strangulations squeezes the sinus causing the heart to slow down and cutting your blood pressure, this ultimately results in losing your consciousness. On the other hand compressing the carotid artery below the sinus, results in fall in pressure within the sinus and rise in blood pressure with increase in heart beat.

It is still not a clear method of death where manual stimulated of carotid sinus results in nerve impulse causing cardiac arrest. It is also a possible reason for strangulations and hanging. They are yet to be proved.

What is hypersensitivity?

Extensively manual stimulation changes the blood pressure and heart rates. One should be very careful as it may be an important factor leading to death in case of elderly people and people affected by hypersensitivity. Other frightening consequences are Pulmonary Embolism, Myocardial Infarctions and stroke.

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