Simultaneous determination of hematocrit, aggregate size and sedimentation velocity by He-Ne laser scattering

A method has been developed to study erythrocyte aggregation parameters based on He-Ne laser light scattering. Laser light is passed through a well mixed sample of blood and the forward scattered light intensity is recorded continuously. The orientation of erythrocytes, formation of aggregates and their sedimentation under the gravitational field produces a variation in scattered light intensity. The amplitude and frequency of light signal fluctuations depend on the size of aggregates and their sedimentation velocity. From the recorded light signal, the different erythrocyte aggregation parameters of interest are simultaneously obtained.