Accounting for Tube Hematocrit in Modeling of Blood Flow in Cerebral Capillary Networks

Comput Math Methods Med. 2019 Aug 18:2019:4235937. doi: 10.1155/2019/4235937. eCollection 2019.

Abstract

The aim of this paper consists in the derivation of an analytic formula for the hydraulic resistance of capillaries, taking into account the tube hematocrit level. The consistency of the derived formula is verified using Finite Element simulations. Such an effective formula allows for assigning resistances, depending on the hematocrit level, to the edges of networks modeling biological capillary systems, which extends our earlier models of blood flow through large capillary networks. Numerical simulations conducted for large capillary networks with random topologies demonstrate the importance of accounting for the hematocrit level for obtaining consistent results.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Blood Flow Velocity / physiology
  • Brain / blood supply
  • Capillaries / physiology*
  • Cerebrovascular Circulation / physiology*
  • Computer Simulation
  • Erythrocytes / physiology
  • Finite Element Analysis
  • Hematocrit
  • Humans
  • Mathematical Concepts
  • Models, Cardiovascular
  • Vascular Resistance / physiology