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Blood Reservoir Function Of The Fetal Guinea Pig Liver, Gregory A. Roda, Raymond D. Gilbert, Gordon G. Power

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

To determine of the fetal liver functions as a blood reservoir, we measured liver blood volume under normal conditions and after hemorrhage and volume loading. Nineteen pregnant guinea pig sows and 54 near-term fetuses were injected intravenously with ⁵¹Cr-labeled red cells while the fetuses remained in utero. Ninety seconds later a 0.5-1.0 g sample of liver was garroted with a sharp wire into a tared tube with minimal blood loss. A blood sample was taken to measure counts per ml of blood, the fetus killed and the remainder of the liver weighed. Blood volume of the liver and body …