Variable Segment Length (VSL) Option

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Unique Applications for VSL technology:

Variable sized hearts: There are many models of cardiac dysfunction (mouse, rat, rabbit) where the size of the ventricular cavity varies over time and using a volume catheter with a fixed segment length may not be ideal. For example, in heart failure mice and diabetic rats, intraventricular dimensions can change substantially such that the standard ring spacing for the conductance segment no longer sits at the apical and basal limits of the chamber. An innovative solution offered by Scisense is our Variable Segment Length (VSL) Technology.

Our VSL catheters:

• Have a series of conductance rings situated proximal to the pressure sensor
• Have up to 4 different segment lengths (S1, S2, S3, S4) that can be placed on one catheter providing versatility and flexibility when studying hearts of different sizes
• Our VSL hardware allows for easy and quick selection of any one of the 4 segments on the catheter to be used for measuring volume

Isolated working heart studies: Isolated heart preparations allow for measurement of cardiac function without the influence of neurohormonal factors. Furthermore, the isolated heart model eliminates any impact anesthetics may have on function. For some time, it has been possible to study function in the isolated working rat heart and in recent years, more literature is being published citing the use of an isolated working murine heart. Until now, because of the resistivity values of blood replacement solutions, it has not been possible to use conductance technology to derive volume in the isolated heart model. The FV898 VSL control box addresses this research segment.

FV898 VSL PRESSURE - VOLUME CONTROL BOX:

Scisense VSL catheters connect to an enhanced signal conditioning and amplification hardware unit. Controls allow for the selection of which recording electrode segment is to be used for volume determination and also manual adjustment of the output voltage range.

FEATURES/BENEFITS – VSL HARDWARE:

• For use with standard PV andVSL catheters
• Can be used with solutions of different conductivity to blood (e.g. KREBS)
• Able to measure high values without saturating signal at high end of voltage output scale
• Has adjustable gains and offset to be used with ANY conductive medium with various-sized rodent hearts
• Analog output for compatibility with other data acquisition systems