Should clinical cardiologists report total peripheral resistance or total peripheral conductance?

Regional and total vascular tone have traditionally been assessed by using calculated resistance as the index. However, in most situations, regional f low or cardiac output changes over a much wider range than does blood press ure. With flow in the denominator (resistance), the index is nonlinearly re lated to the changing parameter, thus rendering even simple arithmetic mean s inaccurate. Vascular conductance uses flow in the numerator and results i n an index that is linearly related to flow, thus enabling a variety of rel ationships to be demonstrated that are concealed or distorted when studied by the use of vascular resistance.