Methods for implatation of cranial windows for the direct observations of the pial microcirculation in experimental animals are described in detail. These techniques are suitable for both acute experiments in anesthetized animals and chronic implantation permitting several months of observation in awake animals. Experience over several years shows that these techniques have an acceptably low ra...

BACKGROUND Evaluation of the microcirculation in critically ill patients is usually done by means of indirect parameters. The aim of our study was to evaluate the functional state of the microcirculation by direct visualization of sublingual microcirculation using Sidestream Dark Field Imaging, to determine the correlation between these findings and other parameters that are commonly used in th...

1. Bauer A, Kofler S, Thiel M, Eifert S, Christ F: Monitoring of the sublingual microcirculation in cardiac surgery using orthogonal polarization spectral imaging: Preliminary results. ANESTHESIOLOGY 2007; 107:939–45 2. den Uil CA, Lagrand WK, Spronk PE, van Domburg RT, Hofland J, Lüthen C, Brugts JJ, van der Ent M, Simoons ML: Impaired sublingual microvascular perfusion during surgery with car...

OBJECTIVE Functional impairment of coronary microcirculation is thought to be a major pathway in the development of primary cardiac involvement in SSc; however, the underlying mechanism is not fully understood. We aimed to investigate the mechanisms of coronary flow reserve (CFR) reduction in patients with SSc. METHODS Seventeen SSc patients and 17 gender- and age-matched controls were enroll...

Objective: To compare the effects of nicorandil (a hybrid ATP sensitive potassium channel (KATP channel) opener/nitric oxide donor) with those of isosorbide dinitrate (ISDN) on myocardial microcirculation and cardiac function in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) who had undergone reperfusion treatment by direct balloon angioplasty. Design: Double blind randomised study. Patients: ...

BACKGROUND The effect of mild hypothermia (MH) on microcirculation after resuscitation from cardiac arrest is controversial. The aim of this study was to determine whether MH improves or aggravates the disturbance of cerebral microcirculation. METHODS Twenty domestic male pigs were randomized into the MH group (n = 8), non-hypothermia (NH) group (n = 8) or sham operation group (n = 4). In the...

t-wave oversensing occurs when the counter starts giving dual beeps for every cardiac cycle instead of one. this usually happens when the monitoring lead displays a tall t wave, which is also sharp. r wave sensing algorithms of the devices do not sense t wave because the slow rate of the t wave is much less than that of the r wave. but the slow rate of t waves may change with time and also beca...

Blood rheology is a challenging subject owing to the fact that blood mixture of fluid (plasma) and cells, among which red cells make about 50% total volume. It precisely this circumstance originates peculiar behavior flow in small vessels (i.e., roughly speaking, vessel with diameter less than half millimeter). In class we find arterioles, venules, capillaries. The phenomena taking place microc...

Tasked with providing nutrients and removing metabolic byproducts from virtually all living cells in the body, the microcirculation plays a critical but indirect role in tissue function. Herein lies a major challenge. The microcirculation must maximize the distribution of nutrients and oxygen by touching nearly every living cell, while minimizing the space it occupies to allow room for the netw...

Systemic inflammation is characterized by acute or chronic dysregulation of the host immune response. The intestine plays an important role in systemic inflammation. Disturbances in the intestinal microcirculation due to infiltration of immune cells during systemic inflammation can increase bacterial translocation from the gut to the circulation and aggravate the pathological condition. Therefo...