Circulatory bubble dynamics: from physical to biological aspects
Virginie Papadopoulou1, Meng-Xing Tang2, Costantino Balestra3
1Department of Bioengineering, Imperial College London, London, UK; Environmental & Occupational Physiology Lab., Haute Ecole Paul Henri Spaak, Brussels, Belgium.
Abstract:
Bubbles can form in the body during or after decompression from pressure exposures such as those undergone by scuba divers, astronauts, caisson and tunnel workers. Bubble growth and detachment physics then becomes significant in predicting and controlling the probability of these bubbles causing mechanical problems by blocking vessels, displacing tissues, or inducing an inflammatory cascade if they persist for too long in the body before being dissolved. By contrast to decompression induced bubbles whose site of initial formation and exact composition are debated, there are other instances of bubbles in the bloodstream which are well-defined. Gas emboli unwillingly introduced during surgical procedures and ultrasound microbubbles injected for use as contrast or drug delivery agents are therefore also discussed. After presenting the different ways that bubbles can end up in the human bloodstream, the general mathematical formalism related to the physics of bubble growth and detachment from decompression is reviewed. Bubble behavior in the bloodstream is then discussed, including bubble dissolution in blood, bubble rheology and biological interactions for the different cases of bubble and blood composition considered.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Physiological Pharmacokinetic Models: Blood Flow-Limited Versus Diffusion-Limited Models
Blood Flow
Autoregulation of Blood Flow
Chemical Signaling in Autoregulation
Chemical signaling operates at the precapillary sphincter level, inciting either contraction or relaxation....
Excess Pressure Inside a Drop and a Bubble
Physical Principles Governing Gas Exchange
Gas Laws Governing Respiration
The behavior of gases is guided by Dalton's Law of partial pressures and Henry's Law.
Dalton's Law asserts that the total...
Anatomy of the Circulatory System


