What is Hemodynamics
Essentially, it is the study of blood flow to the body tissues. All the tissues of the body need an adequate blood flow to deliver nutrients and oxygen and remove the products of metabolism. “Any circulatory disturbance leading to inadequate perfusion and inadequate oxygenation of the tissues” is as good a definition of shock as any, but cardiac failure, hypertension and hypotension even without inadequate perfusion all fall under the umbrella of hemodynamics. Is the patient’s hypoxia due to a pulmonary or cardiovascular cause? Hemodynamics and the USCOM will tell you. Is the patient’s hypotension due to cardiogenic causes or vascular collapse? Again, hemodynamics and the USCOM will tell you. Still interested? Then let’s start with a very basic analogy between Ohm’s Law and the circulation. In the example on the left, we have a battery and a few wires coupled to a resistor. For a given current flow I, the voltage that is generated across the resistance is given by I x R. This is Ohm’s
Hemodynamics is the analysis of blood flow and the factors which can influence it. In clinical settings, hemodynamics is a very important part of patient assessment, because a healthy flow of blood throughout the body is critical to a patient’s well being. A number of factors can play a role in how well the blood travels the body, and one of the goals of clinical treatment is to make a patient hemodynamically stable, or to keep a patient hemodynamically stable if his or her blood flow has not been compromised. Blood carries a supply of oxygen and nutrients into every corner of the body, keeping the cells functioning. It starts at the heart, working its way through an array of arteries and capillaries and then back to the heart through the vein so that it can be infused with oxygen to start the process all over again. An interruption of the blood supply can cause tissue death and a variety of other problems. The study of hemodynamics includes the heart and circulatory system, and the lu
Hemodynamics, meaning literally “blood movement”, is the study of blood flow or the circulation. All animal cells require oxygen (O2) for the conversion of carbohydrates, fats and proteins into carbon dioxide (CO2), water and energy in a process known as aerobic respiration. The circulatory system functions to transport the blood to deliver O2, nutrients and chemicals to the cells of the body to ensure their health and proper function, and to remove the cell wastes. The circulatory system is a connected series of tubes, which includes the heart, the arteries, the micro-circulation, and the veins. The heart is the driver of the circulatory system generating cardiac output (CO) by rhythmically contracting and relaxing. This creates changes in regional pressures, and, combined with a complex valvular system in the heart and the veins, ensures that the blood moves around the circulatory system in one direction. The “beating” of the heart generates pulsatile blood flow which is conducted in
