Phantom testing of peripheral artery. Absolute blood flow measurement with digital arteriography.

A technique to measure absolute arterial blood flow in ml/min has been developed utilizing software programs with high-speed digital recording for the off-line analysis of intra-arterial injections of contrast medium. Measurements of pulsatile flow in a phantom for a physical flow model showed that calculations with the final upgrades were within 10% of known flow, using a recording rate of 30 frames/s, a diameter tubing of 5 mm, and flow rates of 300 to 400 ml/min. Quantitative absolute flow of a peripheral artery such as the internal carotid artery may be obtained during routine cerebral arteriography for comparison with anatomic data.