Abstract
Thirty healthy persons have been investigated during one month for the variation of their rheological parameters. Whole blood viscoelasticity and plasma viscosity were determined by means of oscillating capillary flow. The groups examined comprised of 5 women (group A; mean age 23 y.) using oral contraceptives, 17 women (group B; mean age 23 y.) without use of oral contraceptives, and 8 men (group C; mean age 24 y.) as a control for longitudinal comparison. The groups were matched regarding to their age, their concentration of serumproteins, lipids, and ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate) as shown in table 1. The rheological data were standardized to a hematocrit of 45 %. The same values for viscoelastic parameters were found for group A and B, whilst mean cell counts were constant for all groups. Longitudinal variation of viscoelasticity did not differ between men and women, indicating that no specific factor exists that affects rheological properties during menstrual cycle.
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