International journal of microcirculation, clinical and experimental / sponsored by the European Society for Microcirculation
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Int J Microcirc Clin Exp · Jan 1995
Review Comparative StudyAdvances in microcirculation network evaluation: an update.
Many methods are available today for clinical evaluation of the blood supply to an extremity or part of an extremity, some of which are excellent for determining the presence and severity of arterial and venous disorders. These methods, however, do not give any information on the microvascular status of the diseased areas. This is particularly true for the skin circulation, which has a rather complex vascular network with nutritional and thermoregulatory vessels, arteriovenous shunts, etc. ⋯ By using different combinations of the above mentioned microcirculatory techniques, valuable information can be gained regarding pathophysiological phenomena of the microcirculation in many diseases, e.g. vascular disorders, collagenosis. Raynaud's phenomenon, diabetes and hypertension. Using techniques for both macro- and microcirculation is also of great importance for evaluating the effect of therapeutic procedures in several of these disorders.
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Microlymphatics of human skin form two superposed networks. The superficial one located at the level of dermal papillae may be visualized by fluorescence microlymphography. Microlymphatics fill from a subepidermal depot of minute amounts of FITC-dextran 150,000. ⋯ Preserved fragments of the network in chronic venous insufficiency exhibit increased permeability to FITC-dextran 150,000. After visualization of the vessels by the fluorescent dye microlymphatic pressure may be measured by the servo-nulling technique. First results indicate that microlymphatic hypertension contributes to edema formation in patients with primary lymphedema.
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Int J Microcirc Clin Exp · Jan 1982
ReviewCorrelation of hemodynamics in macrocirculation and microcirculation.
The current state of our understanding on the correlation between hemodynamics in the micro- and macrocirculation is assessed. The use of microcirculatory approach has allowed the identification of the sites of microvascular responses to neuro-humoral influences which are known to affect the overall resistance determined by macrocirculatory experimentation. Direct determinations of hematocrit and apparent viscosity in microvessels have helped to interpret macrocirculatory findings on the distribution of red cells and plasma and on the pressure-flow relationships in normal and pathological conditions. ⋯ Microcirculatory studies on the surface glomeruli of Munich-Wistar rats have allowed the identification of the sites of microvascular actions of vasoactive agents and the determination of their effects on glomerular filtration coefficient. Several attempts have been made to synthesize the overall hemo-dynamics at the organ level from microcirculatory data, with some degree of success. In order to attain the goal of correlating macrocirculatory and microcirculatory hemo-dynamics, we need to perform parallel investigations at these levels on the same organs or tissues in the same animal species, together with morphological characterization of the microcirculatory architecture and theoretical modeling in which accounts are taken of the heterogeneity of structural and functional parameters.