Radionuclide assessment of peripheral hemodynamics: a new technique for measurement of forearm blood volume and flow

A new peripheral hemodynamic measurement system using /sup 99m/Tc-labeled red blood cells has been developed. This method was carried out on 22 normal subjects, 29 with coronary artery disease, and two with dilated cardiomyopathy. Peripheral hemodynamic indices obtained from this method included forearm blood volume (FBV), venous capacity (FVC), venous capacity index (VCI), blood flow (FBF), and vascular resistance (FVR), and were compared with the central hemodynamic parameters of left ventricular filling pressure (LVFP), cardiac output (CO), and total systemic vascular resistance (TSVR) obtained with an invasive technique. The normal values were FBV 8.54 +/- 2.04 ml/100 ml; FVC 4.54 +/- 1.23 ml/100 ml; VCI 65.5 +/- 3.8%; FBF 4.26 +/- 0.56 ml/100 ml/min; and FVR 20.9 +/- 4.4 mmHg/ml/100 ml/min. These values were in good agreement with the values reported using conventional plethysmography. The 16 patients with congestive heart failure (NYHA Class II or III) showed significantly lower FBV, FVC, and FBF values and significantly higher VCI and FVR values than the healthy subjects. Capacitance vessel parameters (FBV, FVC, and VCI) and LVFP, FBF and CO, and FVR and TSVR each showed significant correlation; reproducibility was also good. The advantages of this method are (a) the detector does not come in contact with the region being measured; (b) it is possible to ascertain the absolute quantity of blood in the tissue; (c) extravasation of the plasma component can be ignored; and (d) data processing is simple