The capillary tube plasma viscometer--an automatical instrument for measuring plasma viscosity.

A new capillary viscometer was developed to eliminate the measuring errors due to insufficient cleaning or the residue of cleaning solution in the capillary. A disposable polyurethane tube which can be discarded after each determination is used as a measuring chamber. This device has been constructed for bed-side application (light weight, dry, thermostat-controlled measuring capillaries, short measuring period, automated process, and easy operation). The PEARSON correlation coefficient for comparative measurements with the COULTER-HARKNESS viscometer was r = 0.979.