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Patients with severe falciparum malaria show extensive microvascular obstruction that is proportional to the severity of the disease. This finding underscores the prominent role that microvascular obstruction plays in the pathophysiology of severe malaria and illustrates the fundamental difference between the microvascular pathophysiology of malaria and that of bacterial sepsis.

Introduction The introduction of orthogonal polarization spectral (OPS) imaging in clinical research has elucidated new perspectives on the role of microcirculatory flow abnormalities in the pathogenesis of sepsis. Essential to the process of understanding and reproducing these abnormalities is the method of quantification of flow scores.

PRP has a strong stimulant effect on capillary regeneration in wound healing. These effects are mainly noticeable during the early stages of wound healing.

Orthogonal polarization spectral (OPS) imaging is a new clinical technique for observation of the microcirculation of organ surfaces. For validation purposes, we compared OPS images of the nailfold skin with those obtained from conventional capillary microscopy at rest and during venous occlusion in 10 male volunteers. These images were computer analyzed to provide red blood cell velocity and capillary diameters of the same nailfold capillaries at rest and during venous occlusion. Results showed that OPS images provided similar values for red blood cell velocity and capillary diameter as those obtained from capillary microscopy images. OPS imaging, however, provided significantly better image quality, as shown by comparison of image contrast between OPS imaging and capillary microscopy. This made image analysis better and easier to perform. It is anticipated, therefore, that OPS imaging will become a new and powerful technique in the study of the human microcirculation in vivo because it can be used on human internal organs.

Blood samples were collected from a total of 70 rabbits at three locations in Trinidad. The locations were the University Field Station (n=46), the School of Veterinary Medicine (n=11), and the Eastern Caribbean Institute of Agriculture and Forestry (n=13). Complete blood counts and serum chemistry determinations were done for each sample. Values obtained were compared to reference ranges in the literature. The effects of gender, maturity (juveniles vs. adults), breed (New Zealand White vs. Mixed), and rabbitry on all parameters were examined. Mixed rabbits were crossbreds consisting of at least two breeds: New Zealand White, Californian, Checkered Giant. A comparison was made between values for haemoglobin, packed cell volume, mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration, and white blood cell count, obtained by manual and automated methods. Most values obtained were within the ranges of those in the literature with the exception of urea (5.5-7.0 mmol/L), albumin (50.56-52.98 g/L) and creatine phosphokinase (CPK) (572.70-821.98 U/L). Albumin and CPK concentrations were higher and urea lower (P<0.05) for the present study. Significant differences (P<0.05) between automated and manual values were found for haemoglobin (Hb), packed cell volume (PCV), and mean corpuscular haemoglobin concentration (MCHC), with values for automated methods being higher for Hb and MCHC and lower for PCV. For the leukon, husbandry practices had an effect on neutrophil, eosinophil, basophil, lymphocyte, and platelet values while maturity influenced neutrophil and lymphocyte counts (P<0.05). The automated white blood cell count (WBC a ) was affected by breed (P<0.05). In the case of the erythron, husbandry practices affected automated PCV and MCHC values, and red blood cell counts (RBC) (P<0.05). Maturity influenced automated Hb and PCV values, and RBC (P<0.05). Mixed breeds had higher automated Hb, PCV and RBC values than New Zealand White rabbits (P<0.05). Male rabbits had higher values than females for manual and automated Hb, manual and automated PCV, and RBC (P<0.05). For serum chemistry, husbandry practices had an effect on potassium (K), phosphorus (P), creatinine, bilirubin, aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), amylase and calcium (P<0.05). Phosphorus, AST, cholesterol and glucose were higher for juveniles; while chloride was higher for adult rabbits (P<0.05). Only CPK was affected by breed, with the mixed breed having higher values than New Zealand White rabbits (P<0.05). Males had higher values for potassium, total protein, and albumin, while females had higher values for cholesterol (P<0.05). Haematology and serum chemistry reference intervals obtained in this study may therefore be considered useful baseline values for domestic rabbit populations in the Caribbean.

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No significant differences were found between the gingival capillary density of smokers and non-smokers.