Cerebral Blood Flow in Orthostatic Intolerance.
This research paper explores the critical role of cerebral blood flow (CBF) in orthostatic intolerance (OI), which includes conditions such as POTS and orthostatic hypotension. Despite OI's association with symptoms that significantly affect quality of life, CBF regulation issues during upright posture often go unrecognized because current diagnostic methods primarily rely on heart rate and blood pressure metrics, which do not always correlate with CBF anomalies. The study emphasizes the importance of directly measuring CBF to accurately understand and address the pathophysiology of OI, particularly in conditions like myalgic encephalomyelitis, chronic fatigue syndrome, and long COVID where traditional proxies might not indicate abnormalities. The paper reviews various methods for assessing CBF including technologies like transcranial Doppler ultrasound and near infrared spectroscopy.
Published February 03, 2025
