Model-based quantification of skin microcirculatory perfusion

• During the last decades new tools, such as magnetic resonance imaging and Doppler ultra sound imaging, have rapidly been taken into clinical practice for studying the flow dynamics of the macrocirculation. M eanw hile, techniques for quantifying the microcirculation have struggled to become clinically accepted. This includes the use of laser Doppler flow metry (LDF), an optical technique that is capable of monitoring either spatial or temporal changes in the microcirculation by analyzing the backscattered Doppler shifted light from a laser illuminated tissue. Until now , LDF has only been capable of producing non-absolute relative measures, w hich has limited its cl inical acceptance. With a model based analysis approach, as presented here, this can be overcome, and objective diagnosis of the microcirculation may finally be a part of everyday clinical praxis. The most important advantages w ith the proposed method are that a quantitative perfusion estimate (% RBC × mm/ s) can be extracted, and that this measure can be resolved into different speed regions.

Subject headings

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Medicinteknik -- Medicinsk apparatteknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Medical Engineering -- Medical Equipment Engineering (hsv//eng)

Publication and Content Type

vet (subject category)

kap (subject category)