Monitoring skin fluorescein delivery independent of skin pigmentation

This study evaluated two changes in fluorometric assessment of fluorescein dye delivery: (1) monitoring the proportional, rather than the absolute, increase above the preinjection background reading at each site to obviate the effect of skin color and (2) employing gradual means of dye administration to facilitate monitoring uptake kinetics and to lessen the likelihood and severity of histamine-mediated reactions. In 15 beagles, background and postdye readings were obtained with the fiberoptic fluorometer at 27 pairs of matched light- and dark-skin sites of intact perfusion. After dye administration, the absolute increase in fluorescence at light sites averaged more than twice (approximately 225%) that at dark sites. However, the newly introduced proportional increase (PI) was independent of pigmentation. The PI of comparably perfused light and dark sites differed by an average of 3.9% (p greater than 0.05 for difference between PIdark and PIlight). This consistency was maintained after each of three methods of fluorescein administration. After the color independence of the PI was established, its relation to perfusion was assessed in nine 3 X 12 cm pedicle flaps of varied pigmentation. Background fluorometric readings were obtained at eight sites along the longitudinal axis of each flap. Dye was administered as a 20-minute 0.25 mg/kg/min infusion. The PI clearly delineated gradations in perfusion, correlating highly with more time-consuming kinetic indexes and accurately predicting viability. The pedicle row, last viable row (V1), and first nonviable row (N1) had mean PI values of 10.5 +/- 4.5, 4.2 +/- 2.6, and 0.1 +/- 0.1, respectively, at 25 minutes after the start of infusion (p less than 0.05 for pedicle vs V1, pedicle vs N1, and V1 vs N1).