Pharmacology Nervous System Question 2

Question

Does the Sympatholytic increase, decrease, or has no effect on:

Blood flow to skeletal muscles

Blood Glucose

Blood Pressure

Bronchial Smooth Muscle

Digestion

Heart Rate

Insulin

Mucus Secretion

Pupils

Salivation

Answer 1

So the previous answer from Jesse E. is actually almost completely backwards. A sympatholytic is an agent that decreases the post-ganglionic nerve firing to the effector organs innervated. They "-lyse" or breakdown actions from the sympathetic nervous system (and thus indirectly promote actions or "increase tone" of the parasympathetic nervous system). They may be centrally acting (in the brain/spinal cord--such as the alpha2 agonists clonidine or methyldopa) or peripherally acting (beta blockers). Thus, they favor "rest and digest" results associated with the parasympathetic nervous system, not "fight or flight" as he mentioned.

Blood flow to skeletal muscles - varies depending on the sympatholytic (generally decrease though)

Blood Glucose - decrease (beta-blockers may exacerbate hypoglycemia)

Blood Pressure - decrease

Bronchial Smooth Muscle - decrease

Digestion - increase

Heart Rate - decrease

Insulin - varies depending on the sympatholytic (generally decrease though)

Mucus Secretion - increase

Pupils - constrict

Salivation - increase

These are high yield topics so if you want someone who has a passion for teaching and truly understands interactions of the human body feel free to contact me!

Answer 2

Blood flow to skeletal muscles. - Decrease

Blood Glucose - Increase

Blood Pressure - Increase

Bronchial Smooth Muscle - Increase(bronchodilation)

Digestion - Decrease

Heart Rate - Increase

Insulin - Decreased

Mucus Secretion - Decrease

Pupils - Increase( dilation)

Salivation - Decrease

The way I remember these is these are designed to conserve energy in the "fight or flight" response. This does show up on tests frequently, so if you want help understanding each functions, please feel free to contact me.