Affiliations: Hemodynamics Laboratory, Department of Vascular Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, Larissa, Greece | Department of Medical Laboratories, School of Health Sciences, Technological Educational Institute of Larissa, Larissa, Greece
Note: [] Corresponding author: Dr. Aristotle Koutsiaris, Hemodynamics Laboratory, Department of Vascular Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, 9 Miauli St., Larissa 41223, Greece. Fax: +30 2410 555378; E-mails: ariskout@otenet.gr, ariskout@teilar.gr.
Abstract: An empirical parametric equation with 2 bluntness parameters was introduced for describing the velocity profile of blood in the small arterioles and venules of small mammals, in vivo, with the basic approximations of the axisymmetric flow in cylindrical geometry, zero velocity at the wall and a blunter than parabolic flow profile. The purpose was to evaluate the usefulness of this equation in describing the velocity profile and in estimating the volume flow when only one velocity measurement is available near the vessel axis. The equation was tested on 17 velocity profiles (9 arteriolar and 8 venular) previously measured by particle image velocimetry (PIV) techniques, at diameters ranging from 17 to 38.6 μm. The correlation coefficients of each experimental profile were higher than 0.96. The average relative error-bias measured at 10 radial segments ranged between −5% to 1%, leading to an average relative volume flow estimation error for all the 17 velocity profiles of −1.8% with a standard deviation of 4.3%.
Keywords: Velocity profile, in vivo, microvascular hemodynamics
