Venous compliance identification by a new model of limb emptying measured by plethysmography: a preliminary study

Measurement of venous compliance is a matter of high interest for clinical and pharmacological studies. The authors investigated a new method that shortens its determination using venous occlusion plethysmography. Calf volume is measured during limb emptying succeeding to the sudden release of a congestive pressure. Numerical modeling is based on a modified 2-element windkessel model. It allows the identification of a pressure-dependent compliance, using 3 different resistance models. Preliminary results of the method are presented for one subject and compared to those of stepwise venous occlusion plethysmography. A good agreement is observed, keeping in mind that the phenomena involved in the compliance definition are not similar in both methods