VISUALIZING THE CEREBROSPINAL FLUID WITHIN THE HUMAN CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM

摘要

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is contained inside the skull and spine and provides cushioning and refreshment of minerals to the central nervous system which it bathes. It is produced at the rate of approximately 15 ml per hour from the ventricles within the cerebra, from where it is delivered to the outer surface of the brain and spinal cord and removed at the top of the brain into the large vein called the superior sagittal sinus. The flaw is not well understood, being very difficult to access in vivo except by techniques too crude for fluid flow analysis such as MRI. A test rig has been constructed at the University of Nottingham to investigate optically the flow patterns occurring within the CSF. The model of the cerebrospinal fluid space in the skull and spine is constructed of a vacuum-formed acrylic sheet, giving an accurate geometry at 2:1 scale. This paper describes attempts to visualize the flow using dye based on our previous experience in order to develop a systematic approach to analyzing more complex models in the future that will incorporate physiological details such as moving walls. The model shows that the additional physiological details must be necessary to create a circulation of CSF such that it will travel between the head and base of spine.