ABSTRACT
This chapter presents key elements about the architectural organization of microvascular networks. It considers the suspension behavior of blood in simple components of a network, from single vessels to bifurcations. Many excellent reviews on blood flow in microvascular networks are available, mainly based on the contribution of pioneers who investigated superficial two-dimensional networks, such as the cremaster muscle or the mesentery, through a combination of intravital microscopy, model experiments and mathematical modeling. Microvascular networks are able to ensure adequate blood supply, feeding every cell in peripheral tissues under a wide range of physiologic conditions and varying metabolic needs. Microvascular bifurcations are the smallest architectural components of a microvascular network where hematocrit heterogeneities can be observed. With plasma, the formation of loose Red blood cells (RBC) aggregates in the sample makes the suspension less uniform. In the regime of microcirculation, the size of RBCs is not negligible compared to the size of blood vessels, which breaks off the continuum assumption.
