[Blood flow velocity in the ophthalmic artery measured by Doppler ultrasonography during cardiopulmonary bypass--usefulness for cerebral perfusion monitor].

Brain blood flow is supplied from the internal carotid artery, and the ophthalmic artery is the first branch of the internal carotid artery. We studied how blood flow velocity in the ophthalmic artery (OAV) changes during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and investigated whether it can be used to monitor brain blood flow during CPB. In 13 open heart surgeries in adults, OAV and blood flow velocity in the common carotid artery (CAV) were measured with Doppler ultrasonography, and blood flow volume in the brachiocephalic artery (BA flow) was measured simultaneously with an electromagnetic flow meter. Maximal blood flow velocity in the ophthalmic artery (OAVmax) and the common carotid artery (CAVmax) were 0.27 +/- 0.13 m/sec and 0.64 +/- 0.40 m/sec, BA flow was 486 +/- 226 ml/min before CPB. When CPB pump flow was varied (2.4, 2.2, 2.0, 2.2, 2.4 l/min/m2), the parameters during and after CPB changed as follows (as percentage of pre-CPB levels): OAVmax, 58.1%, 50.9%, 37.6%, 49.4%, 64.7%, 108.4%; CAVmax, 67.0%, 58.0%, 48.2%, 113.6%, 105.5%, 134.3%; and BAflow, 87.3%, 39.8%, 53.9%, 50.5%, 95.0%, 159.8%. Our results indicate that OAVmax more accurately reflects changes in pump flow than does CAVmax and BA flow. Because vessel resistance in the ophthalmic artery was small during CPB, OAVmax was thought to be determined mainly by CPB pump flow. OAVmax was useful for monitoring brain blood flow during CPB.