Word parts
What it means
When vessels narrow, blood flow through them drops and blood pressure rises. The body uses it to save heat in the cold, to keep blood flowing to vital organs during shock or blood loss, and to slow bleeding from an injury. Cold, nicotine, stress and drugs such as epinephrine and norepinephrine cause it. The opposite is vasodilation, the widening of vessels.
For the nurse
Cold applications cause vasoconstriction, which lowers swelling and bleeding after an injury. Nicotine narrows vessels too, one reason smoking slows healing.
At a glance
| Spanish | vasoconstricción |
|---|---|
| Also written | vasoconstrict, vasoconstricted |
Related terms
blood pressure
The force of blood pushing against the walls of the arteries, written as systolic over diastolic in mm Hg.
epinephrine
A hormone and drug, also called adrenaline, that raises heart rate and blood pressure and opens the airways.
norepinephrine
A hormone and nerve messenger that narrows blood vessels and raises blood pressure, also given as an IV drug.
hypovolemic shock
Shock from a large loss of blood or body fluid, so there is too little volume in the blood vessels to supply the organs.
adrenergic
Relating to nerves and receptors that respond to epinephrine and norepinephrine, or a drug that acts like them.