Estimation of hepatic blood flow using a single injection dye clearance method

Abstract

In dogs anesthetized with morphinesodium barbital, hepatic blood flow was estimated from the concentration-time slopes of peripheral arterial and hepatic venous blood following a single injection of either indocyanine or BSP. The injection of indocyanine in doses ranging from 5 to 50 mg produced 20-minute decay slopes which were logarithmic. The mean estimated hepatic plasma flow in 25 dogs using indocyanine was 23 ± 1.3 ml/kg/min. and the mean estimated hepatic blood flow was 43 ± 2.2 ml/kg/min. These mean blood flow values were about 12% higher than the hepatic blood flows estimated with Bradley's constant infusion (BSP) method but there was quite close agreement in hepatic plasma flow values with the two methods. The mean indocyanine space in 25 dogs was 49 ± 1.4 ml/kg. Indocyanine appears to be preferable to BSP for use with the single injection method. From a theoretical as well as practical standpoint, the single injection method appears to have potential usefulness for the estimation of hepatic blood flow.