Evaluation of rheological therapy by orally administered drugs

Abstract

The effects of orally administered drugs on blood rheology and their clinical effects in peripheral and cerebral ischaemia are reviewed. Measurements of red cell deformability remains a major problem, and more sensitive and specific methodology is required for pharmacological studies. Stress tests of red cells are interesting models to investigate drug protection against cell rigidity, but which tests to choose is unclear. There is a lack of long-term, placebo-controlled, double-blind studies of the effects of conventional oral doses on blood rheology ex vivo in patients. Such studies might usefully be combined with future studies of clinical efficacy, which would then allow correlation of rheological and clinical effects.