Assessment of Microcirculation and Microrheological Parameters of Blood in Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Using Biophotonics Techniques

Abstract

In this study, the parameters of blood microcirculation and microrheology were measured using the methods of laser aggregometry and optical tweezers in vitro, as well as the method of digital capillaroscopy in vivo. It was shown that in patients suffering from type 2 diabetes mellitus, an increase in the number of RBC aggregates passing through the narrow capillaries leads to a significant decrease in the velocity of the capillary blood flow, which can be explained by the increased viscosity of the whole blood and decreased deformability of RBCs. Also, for the group of patients, a statistically significant increase in the rate of RBC aggregation and the hydrodynamic strength of aggregates, RBC aggregation and disaggregation forces were observed compared to the control group. We have demonstrated the possibility of using these methods to assess changes in microrheological and microcirculatory parameters of the blood.