Experimental validation of methods for the measurement of coronary sinus blood flow in man.

The measurement accuracy of clinically applicable methods for blood flow measurement in coronary sinus -- continuous local thermodilution (LTD), differential pressure (DP), ultrasonic Doppler (US) and the electromagnetic flow measurement method (EMF) -- was examined in 15 anaesthetized closed chest dogs with left ventricle weights between 150 and 200 g. The LTD, DP, US and the EMF were examined in each experiment in the two following arrangements. 1. In coronary sinus -- left jugular vein by-pass: This arrangement allowed four reference methods for measurement of coronary sinus blood flow (CBF). 2. In "clinical" position, without by-pass, which allowed two reference methods for CBF measurements. The results on the measurement accuracy of the LTD, DP and US are, depending on the measurement arrangement, contradictory. In the by-pass arrangement 1 there was observed a good agreement of the LTD, DP and US CBF values with the reference values. In the "clinical" position, without by-pass 2 the measurement accuracy of LTD was not sufficient for exact measurement of CBF and derived parameters. The examined velocity tip flow probes (US, DP) gave no correlation with the reference methods. US and DP are even for semiquantitative estimation of CBF unsuitable. The EMF tip flow probe was for the CBF measurement unsuitable, because of disturbance by the electrical activity of myocardium.