Medical Term:
baroreceptor
Pronunciation: bar′ō-rē-sep′ter, -tōr
Definition:
- In general, any sensor of pressure changes.
- Sensory nerve ending in the wall of the atrium of the heart, vena cava, aortic arch, and carotid sinus, sensitive to stretching of the wall resulting from increased pressure from within and functioning as the receptor of central reflex mechanisms that tend to reduce that pressure.
Synonym(s): baroceptor, pressoreceptor
[G. baros, weight, + receptor]
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Examples: glitazone, GI cocktail, etc.
