Fluid Pressure
The term fluid pressure is coined as, the measurement of the force per unit area of a given surface of a closed container. It is a branch of physics that helps to study the properties of fluid under various conditions of force.
Gauge Pressure
Pressure is the physical force acting per unit area on a body; the applied force is perpendicular to the surface of the object per unit area. The air around us at sea level exerts a pressure (atmospheric pressure) of about 14.7 psi but this doesn’t seem to bother anyone as the bodily fluids are constantly pushing outwards with the same force but if one swims down into the ocean a few feet below the surface one can notice the difference, there is increased pressure on the eardrum, this is due to an increase in hydrostatic pressure.
The human brain and spinal cord are immersed in the cerebrospinal fluid. The fluid is normally continuous between the cranial and spinal cavities and exerts a pressure of 100 to 200 mm of H2O above the prevailing atmospheric pressure. In medical work, pressures are often measured in units of millimeters of H2O because body fluids, including the cerebrospinal fluid, typically have the same density as water. The pressure of the cerebrospinal fluid can be measured by means of a spinal tap as illustrated as shown. A hollow tube is inserted into the spinal column, and the height to which the fluid rises is observed. If the fluid rises to a height of 160 mm, we write its gauge pressure as 160 mm H2O. (a) Express this pressure in pascals, in atmospheres, and in millimeters of mercury. (b) Some conditions that block or inhibit the flow of cerebrospinal fluid can be investigated by means of Queckenstedt’s test. In this procedure, the veins in the patient’s neck are compressed to make the blood pressure rise in the brain, which in turn should be transmitted to the cerebrospinal fluid. Explain how the level of fluid in the spinal tap can be used as a diagnostic tool for the condition of the patient’s spine.
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