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Venous Hemodynamics

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Doppler Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology

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Abstract

Since the underlying hemodynamics are essential for utilizing and interpreting Doppler recordings of the fetal venous system, we here focus on steady and accelerated flow and pulsatile flow in veins from a clinical view. That covers blood velocity, pressure, and resistance including viscosity. Further, we discuss the nature of waves that travel along the venous transmission lines and how they are expressed in velocity, pressure, and diameter variation. Towards the periphery, pulsations taper off according to changes in local impedance including geometry. Clinically relevant veins (umbilical vein, portal system, and ductus venosus) are used to demonstrate the effect of wave reflections, reservoir function, and the impact of blood velocity level on viscous resistance. The information on volume of blood flow, pressure gradient, and diameter variation are fundamentals in circulation. We therefore discuss the techniques of assessing these parameters as they are used in clinical research. We provide suggestions for how to optimize the measurements and minimize error to promote these techniques as candidates for clinical assessment tools in individual cases. The umbilical vein, ductus venosus, and the fetal liver are involved in decisive distributional regulation and we correspondingly focus on the underlying dynamics of this venous section in particular.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway

    Torvid Kiserud & Jörg Kessler

  2. Department of Clinical Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway

    Torvid Kiserud & Jörg Kessler

Authors
  1. Torvid Kiserud
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  2. Jörg Kessler
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Correspondence to Torvid Kiserud .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Missouri–Kansas City, Kansas City, MO, USA

    Dev Maulik

  2. Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, London, UK

    Christoph C. Lees

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Kiserud, T., Kessler, J. (2023). Venous Hemodynamics. In: Maulik, D., Lees, C.C. (eds) Doppler Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06189-9_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06189-9_5

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