Author Description

The Symposium on Comparative Pathophysiology of Circulatory Disturbances was held at the headquarters of The Kroc Foundation on the J & R Double Arch Ranch of the Founder, Ray A. Kroc, in the Santa Ynez Valley, California, from November 7 to 9, 1971. The symposium was successful in bringing together investigators from diverse fields, but with common interests in comparative pathology and physiology, to discuss and define basic mechanisms of circulatory disturbances in man and other animals. Different animal models were described that can mimic physiologic alterations occurring in man. The papers in this volume, all presented at the Symposium, present a broad, well-balanced view of the comparative pathophysiology of circulatory disturbances. The investigators come from such disparate fields as veterinary medicine, physiology, pathology, comparative pathology and physiology, and clinical medicine, and focus on various animal models of circulatory disturbance. Their topics range from alteration of circulatory regulation in the fetus and neonate to pathophysiology of marine animals and include models of the more conventional circulatory diseases, e.g., atherosclerosis, hypertension, shock, congestive heart failure and acute myocardial infarction. The small, social setting of the symposium was in striking contrast to the large, less personal society meetings. The sociability and friendliness of the participants, who rarely meet due to their diverse fields, overcame individual reserve about presenting work to a body of strangers. This social atmosphere was engendered by our gracious host, Dr. Robert Kroc, President of The Kroc Foundation, and his wife, Alice. The serenity of the Santa Ynez Valley, where we met, helped create the spontaneous and friendly atmosphere which pervaded the conference. From these presentations, new approaches were proposed which may yield therapeutic benefits. Hopefully, this first symposium on this topic will produce new and continued collaboration in future research on these many different, clinically important, animal models of circulatory disease.