Clinical physiology (Oxford, England)
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The present investigation was undertaken in order to study (1) the difference in arterial (Ca) and venous (Cv) concentration of [51Cr]EDTA (ethylenediaminetetraacetate) after a single intravenous injection, (2) the impact of different physiological variables on this difference, and (3) the error introduced in the measurement of renal plasma clearance and total plasma clearance by using venous blood samples instead of arterial. In 13 patients with GFR ranging from 29 to 150 ml min-1, Ca was higher than Cv immediately after the injection. After mean 38 min (range 12-82 min) the two curves crossed, and 180-300 min post-injection (p.i.) Cv was 5.9% higher than Ca (range 0.5-13.9%, P less than 0.001). ⋯ Plasma clearance determined by venous and arterial blood samples does not differ significantly as long as the concentration is followed from the time of injection and a long period is applied. When simplified plasma clearance techniques are used, different results may be obtained from venous and arterial samples. The simplified techniques using venous blood samples--which usually include some empirical corrections--should be sufficiently reliable in daily clinical practice provided the forearm blood flow is reasonably high, e.g. exposure to cold should be avoided.