Pathophysiological Significance of Blood Rheology

Authors: OĞUZ KERİM BAŞKURT

Abstract: Tissue perfusion is determined by both blood vessel geometry and the rheological properties of blood. Blood is a non-Newtonian fluid, its viscosity being dependent on flow conditions. Blood and plasma viscosities, as well as the rheological properties of blood cells (e.g., deformability and aggregation of red blood cells), are influenced by disease processes and extreme physiological conditions. These rheological parameters may in turn affect the blood flow in vessels, and hence tissue perfusion. Unfortunately it is not always possible to determine if a change in rheological parameters is the cause or the result of a disease process. The hemorheology-tissue perfusion relationship is further complicated by the distinct in vivo behavior of blood. Besides the special hemodynamic mechanisms affecting the composition of blood in various regions of the vascular system, autoregulation based on vascular control mechanisms further complicates this relationship. Hemorheological parameters may be especially important for adequate tissue perfusion if the vascular system is geometrically challenged.

Keywords: Hemorheology, tissue perfusion, metabolic autoregulation, shear stress

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