Progress in Applied Microcirculation / Vasomotion and Flow Motion

The microcirculation presents varying patterns of dynamic adjustments by which microvessel diameter, and consequently blood flow velocity, change in a time-dependent fashion. When these changes become periodic they constitute the phenomena of vasomotion and flow motion, respectively. These phenomena can now be readily detected in humans by laser Doppler flow (LDF) velocimetry in a noninvasive manner. Vasomotion has become prominent in clinical considerations as new insights into its relation to peripheral arterial disease have been obtained. The presence of oscillatory fluctuations in blood flow allows the application of a variety of powerful signal-processing techniques which increases the amount of information that can be extracted from LDF velocimetry. Chaos theory has been applied to gain further insight into the structure of these fluctuations. This book presents the most up-to-date information on vasomotion and flow motion, ranging from experimental findings to clinical data and systems behaviour analysis. Illustrating the interdisciplinary nature of small vessel research, it should be beneficial to both basic and clinical researchers.