Automated limb blood flow plethysmograph

1983 ◽  
Vol 244 (3) ◽  
pp. H413-H416
Author(s):  
R. R. Marcus ◽  
S. M. Horvath
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Real Time ◽  
Cuff Pressure ◽  
Calculated Data ◽  
User Interaction ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Limb Blood Flow ◽  
Graphic Display ◽  
Computer Terminal ◽  
Blood Flows

An automated limb blood flow plethysmograph has been developed and interfaced to a PDP-11/60 computer. This system automatically inflates blood pressure cuffs, calibrates strain gauges, provides real-time display of limb circumference changes, and provides digital output of limb blood flow and real-time graphic display of cuff pressure. The system has been designed to require a minimum amount of user interaction by providing automatic calibration in situ, which is initiated by depressing a switch, and automatic venous cuff inflation, which initiates computer analysis of blood flow data. Digital and graphic display of blood flow is provided on a computer terminal 12 s after the start of venous occlusion. All raw data are stored on a disk for optional postexperiment analysis, which enables each blood flow curve to be graphically displayed and reanalyzed under user control. Calculated data are stored on a disk for output to a line printer at the conclusion of an experiment. A trend plot of all analyzed blood flows can be displayed on a computer terminal anytime during an experiment.

Maximal vascular leg conductance in trained and untrained men

1987 ◽  
Vol 62 (2) ◽  
pp. 606-610 ◽  
Author(s):  
P. G. Snell ◽  
W. H. Martin ◽  
J. C. Buckey ◽  
C. G. Blomqvist
Keyword(s):  
Blood Pressure ◽  
Blood Flow ◽  
Oxygen Uptake ◽  
Maximal Oxygen Uptake ◽  
Reactive Hyperemia ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Vascular Conductance ◽  
Blood Flows ◽  
Arterial Blood ◽  
Sedentary Subjects

Lower leg blood flow and vascular conductance were studied and related to maximal oxygen uptake in 15 sedentary men (28.5 +/- 1.2 yr, mean +/- SE) and 11 endurance-trained men (30.5 +/- 2.0 yr). Blood flows were obtained at rest and during reactive hyperemia produced by ischemic exercise to fatigue. Vascular conductance was computed from blood flow measured by venous occlusion plethysmography, and mean arterial blood pressure was determined by auscultation of the brachial artery. Resting blood flow and mean arterial pressure were similar in both groups (combined mean, 3.0 ml X min-1 X 100 ml-1 and 88.2 mmHg). After ischemic exercise, blood flows were 29- and 19-fold higher (P less than 0.001) than rest in trained (83.3 +/- 3.8 ml X min-1 X 100 ml-1) and sedentary subjects (61.5 +/- 2.3 ml X min-1 X 100 ml-1), respectively. Blood pressure and heart rate were only slightly elevated in both groups. Maximal vascular conductance was significantly higher (P less than 0.001) in the trained compared with the sedentary subjects. The correlation coefficients for maximal oxygen uptake vs. vascular conductance were 0.81 (trained) and 0.45 (sedentary). These data suggest that physical training increases the capacity for vasodilation in active limbs and also enables the trained individual to utilize a larger fraction of maximal vascular conductance than the sedentary subject.

Limb Blood Flow Following Umbilical Arterial Catheterization

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1975 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 248-256
Author(s):  
William F. Powers ◽  
Paul R. Swyer
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Iliac Artery ◽  
Umbilical Artery ◽  
Neonatal Period ◽  
Isotonic Saline ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Aortic Bifurcation ◽  
Limb Blood Flow ◽  
Arterial Catheterization ◽  
Paired T Test

Stimulated blood flow was measured in the legs of 28 infants who had undergone umbilical arterial catheterization in the neonatal period. Catheter tips were positioned in the region of the aortic bifurcation, and only an isotonic saline/dextrose solution was continuously pumped through the catheter. The catheters were in place for an average of 58.3 hours (range, 4 to 144), and the infants were studied between 29 and 135 days of age (mean, 67 days). Blood flow in both legs was measured simultaneously by venous occlusion plethysmography using a mercury-in-rubber strain gauge. Analysis of peak stimulated blood flow in each leg and simultaneous flow in the opposite leg showed no difference between flow in the leg whose iliac artery had been catheterized in the neonatal period and flow in the opposite leg (paired t-test = 0.17; P > .50). No chronic, subclinical flow deficiencies of umbilical arterial catheterization were demonstrable. We see no new reason to curtail the judicious use of the umbilical artery catheter.

Venous occlusion plethysmography reduces arterial diameter and flow velocity

1989 ◽  
Vol 66 (5) ◽  
pp. 2239-2244 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. R. Hiatt ◽  
S. Y. Huang ◽  
J. G. Regensteiner ◽  
A. J. Micco ◽  
G. Ishimoto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Flow Velocity ◽  
Femoral Artery ◽  
Cuff Pressure ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Doppler Velocity ◽  
Peripheral Blood Flow ◽  
Arterial Diameter ◽  
Mean Velocity ◽  
Arterial Inflow

The measurement of peripheral blood flow by plethysmography assumes that the cuff pressure required for venous occlusion does not decrease arterial inflow. However, studies in five normal subjects suggested that calf blood flow measured with a plethysmograph was less than arterial inflow calculated from Doppler velocity measurements. We hypothesized that the pressure required for venous occlusion may have decreased arterial velocity. Further studies revealed that systolic diameter of the superficial femoral artery under a thigh cuff decreased from 7.7 +/- 0.4 to 5.6 +/- 0.7 mm (P less than 0.05) when the inflation pressure was increased from 0 to 40 mmHg. Cuff inflation to 40 mmHg also reduced mean velocity 38% in the common femoral artery and 47% in the popliteal artery. Inflation of a cuff on the arm reduced mean velocity in the radial artery 22% at 20 mmHg, 26% at 40 mmHg, and 33% at 60 mmHg. We conclude that inflation of a cuff on an extremity to low pressures for venous occlusion also caused a reduction in arterial diameter and flow velocity.

Local vasoconstriction in spinal cord-injured and able-bodied individuals

2007 ◽  
Vol 103 (3) ◽  
pp. 1070-1077 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Kooijman ◽  
M. de Hoog ◽  
G. A. Rongen ◽  
H. J. M. van Kuppevelt ◽  
P. Smits ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spinal Cord ◽  
Blood Flow ◽  
Vascular Resistance ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Myogenic Response ◽  
Cuff Inflation ◽  
Limb Blood Flow ◽  
Percent Increase ◽  
Spinal Cord Injured ◽  
Forearm Vascular Resistance

Local vasoconstriction plays an important role in maintaining blood pressure in spinal cord-injured individuals (SCI). We aimed to unravel the mechanisms of local vasoconstriction [venoarteriolar reflex (VAR) and myogenic response] using both limb dependency and cuff inflation in SCI and compare these with control subjects. Limb blood flow was measured in 11 male SCI (age: 24–55 yr old) and 9 male controls (age: 23–56 yr old) using venous occlusion plethysmography in forearm and calf during three levels of 1) limb dependency, and 2) cuff inflation. During limb dependency, vasoconstriction relies on both the VAR and the myogenic response. During cuff inflation, the decrease in blood flow is caused by the VAR and by a decrease in arteriovenous pressure difference, whereas the myogenic response does not play a role. At the highest level of leg dependency, the percent increase in calf vascular resistance (mean arterial pressure/calf blood flow) was more pronounced in SCI than in controls (SCI 186 ± 53%; controls 51 ± 17%; P = 0.032). In contrast, during cuff inflation, no differences were found between SCI and controls (SCI 17 ± 17%; controls 14 ± 10%). Percent changes in forearm vascular resistance in response to either forearm dependency or forearm cuff inflation were equal in both groups. Thus local vasoconstriction during dependency of the paralyzed leg in SCI is enhanced. The contribution of the VAR to local vasoconstriction does not differ between the groups, since no differences between groups existed for cuff inflation. Therefore, the augmented local vasoconstriction in SCI during leg dependency relies, most likely, on the myogenic response.

Failure of impedance plethysmography to follow exercise-induced changes in limb blood flow

1988 ◽  
Vol 75 (1) ◽  
pp. 41-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard L. Hughson
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Supine Position ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Impedance Plethysmography ◽  
Electrode Position ◽  
Limb Blood Flow ◽  
Mean Values ◽  
Leg Exercise ◽  
Exercise Induced ◽  
Induced Changes

1. The blood flow in the forearm and the calf of six healthy volunteers was measured at rest and after exercise by impedance plethysmography using pulsatile (QZp) and venous occlusion (QZocc) methods, and by venous occlusion strain gauge plethysmography (Qsg). 2. At rest, the impedance QZp method gave values slightly higher than those of Qsg. In the forearm, the ratio QZp to Qsg was 1.26 in the supine position and 1.97 in the upright sitting position. For the calf muscle, the ratios were 1.08 in the supine position and 1.23 in the upright position. 3. Immediately after exercise, Qsg increased from resting values of approximately 2–4 ml min−1 100 ml−1 to mean values of 16–25 ml min−1 100 ml−1 in upright and supine arm or leg exercise. In contrast, the QZp values after exercise increased to only 3.1–4.6 ml min−1 100 ml−1. QZocc likewise failed to show increases in flow except in the supine leg exercise, where flow increased to 8.7 ml min−1 100 ml−1. 4. In an additional subject, it was shown that electrode position had no significant effect on the QZp blood flow measurement after exercise. 5. The failure of QZp to accurately follow the change in Qsg with exercise was probably due in part to pulsatile venous outflow. In addition, changes in microvessel packed cell volume and shear rate may influence the observed QZp. It is concluded that impedance plethysmography is not valid for estimation of limb blood flow during reactive hyperaemia after exercise.

Body temperature control of rat tail blood flow

1983 ◽  
Vol 245 (3) ◽  
pp. R426-R432 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. R. Raman ◽  
M. F. Roberts ◽  
V. J. Vanhuyse
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Heat Exchange ◽  
Body Temperature ◽  
Heat Flow ◽  
Thermal Conductance ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Albino Rats ◽  
Blood Flows ◽  
Rat Tail ◽  
Tail Blood

Tail blood flow (BF) and heat flow (HF) were measured in five albino rats during transients in rectal temperature (Tre) caused by body heating at rest. During heating, tail temperature (Tt) was kept at 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, or 42 degrees C by enclosing the tail in a water-perfused tube. Thermal conductance (K) was computed as HF/(Tre-Tt). BF was measured by venous occlusion plethysmography. Heating caused a rise in Tre that was accompanied by proportional increases in both K and BF. The ratio R = K/BF represents conductance per unit BF and reflects the amount of heat exchange for a given BF. R can thus be used to estimate the distribution of BF within the tail. R was independent of Tre at all Tt, indicating that BF distribution is controlled by the tail. R was low at low Tt and rose at higher Tt. This suggests that at low Tt, blood flows primarily in central veins of the tail and at higher Tt blood flows in peripheral tail veins.

A restrospective perspective

2005 ◽  
Vol 98 (2) ◽  
pp. 762-763 ◽  
Author(s):  
John Gamble
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Adrenergic Receptors ◽  
Reactive Hyperemia ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Venous Occlusion Plethysmography ◽  
Limb Blood Flow ◽  
Major Area ◽  
Vasoactive Factors ◽  
Health And Disease

Venous occlusion plethysmography is a simple but elegant technique that has contributed to almost every major area of vascular biology in humans. The general principles of plethysmography were appreciated by the late 1800s, and the application of these principles to measure limb blood flow occurred in the early 1900s. Plethysmography has been instrumental in studying the role of the autonomic nervous system in regulating limb blood flow in humans and important in studying the vasodilator responses to exercise, reactive hyperemia, body heating, and mental stress. It has also been the technique of choice to study how human blood vessels respond to a variety of exogenously administered vasodilators and vasoconstrictors, especially those that act on various autonomic and adrenergic receptors. In recent years, plethysmography has been exploited to study the role of the vascular endothelium in health and disease. Venous occlusion plethysmography is likely to continue to play an important role as investigators seek to understand the physiological significance of newly identified vasoactive factors and how genetic polymorphisms affect the cardiovascular system in humans.

Enhanced maximal metabolic vasodilatation in the dominant forearms of tennis players

1986 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 673-678 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. I. Sinoway ◽  
T. I. Musch ◽  
J. R. Minotti ◽  
R. Zelis
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Forearm Blood Flow ◽  
Arterial Occlusion ◽  
Study Groups ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Tennis Players ◽  
Blood Flows ◽  
Metabolic Vasodilation ◽  
Adaptation To Exercise

In an effort to evaluate potential peripheral adaptations to training, maximal metabolic vasodilation was studied in the dominant and nondominant forearms of six tennis players and six control subjects. Maximal metabolic vasodilation was defined as the peak forearm blood flow measured after release of arterial occlusion, the reactive hyperemic blood flow (RHBF). Two ischemic stimuli were employed in each subject: 5 min of arterial occlusion (RHBF5) and 5 min of arterial occlusion coupled with 1 min of ischemic exercise (RHBF5ex). RHBF and resting forearm blood flows were measured using venous occlusion strain-gauge plethysmography (ml X min-1 X 100 ml-1). Resting forearm blood flows were similar in both arms of both groups. RHBF5ex was similar in both arms of our control group (dominant, 40.8 +/- 1.2 vs. nondominant, 40.9 +/- 2.1). However, RHBF5ex was 42% higher in the dominant than in the nondominant forearms of our tennis player population (dominant, 48.7 +/- 4.0 vs. nondominant, 34.4 +/- 3.4; P less than 0.05). This intraindividual difference in peak forearm blood flows was not secondary to improved systemic conditioning since the maximal O2 consumptions in the two study groups were similar (controls, 45.4 +/- 3.9 vs. tennis players, 46.1 +/- 1.7). These findings suggest a primary peripheral cardiovascular adaptation to exercise training in the dominant forearms of the tennis players resulting in a greater maximal vasodilatation.

From Belfast to Mayo and beyond: the use and future of plethysmography to study blood flow in human limbs

2001 ◽  
Vol 91 (6) ◽  
pp. 2431-2441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Joyner ◽  
Niki M. Dietz ◽  
John T. Shepherd
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Adrenergic Receptors ◽  
Reactive Hyperemia ◽  
Venous Occlusion ◽  
Venous Occlusion Plethysmography ◽  
Limb Blood Flow ◽  
Major Area ◽  
Vasoactive Factors ◽  
Health And Disease

Venous occlusion plethysmography is a simple but elegant technique that has contributed to almost every major area of vascular biology in humans. The general principles of plethysmography were appreciated by the late 1800s, and the application of these principles to measure limb blood flow occurred in the early 1900s. Plethysmography has been instrumental in studying the role of the autonomic nervous system in regulating limb blood flow in humans and important in studying the vasodilator responses to exercise, reactive hyperemia, body heating, and mental stress. It has also been the technique of choice to study how human blood vessels respond to a variety of exogenously administered vasodilators and vasoconstrictors, especially those that act on various autonomic and adrenergic receptors. In recent years, plethysmography has been exploited to study the role of the vascular endothelium in health and disease. Venous occlusion plethysmography is likely to continue to play an important role as investigators seek to understand the physiological significance of newly identified vasoactive factors and how genetic polymorphisms affect the cardiovascular system in humans.

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