A proposed method for assessing plasma hypertonicity in vivo EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF CLINICAL NUTRITION Stookey, J. D., Burg, M., Sellmeyer, D. E., Greenleaf, J. E., Arieff, A., Van Hove, L., Gardner, C., King, J. C. 2007; 61 (1): 143-146

Abstract

Indices of plasma hypertonicity, elevated plasma concentrations of solutes that draw fluid out of cells by osmosis, are needed to pursue hypertonicity as a possible risk factor for obesity and chronic disease. This paper proposes a new index that may be more sensitive to mild hypertonicity in vivo at a point in time than traditional measures. The index compares mean corpuscular volume (MCV) estimates from diluted (in solution by automated cell counter) and nondiluted blood (calculated from manual hematocrit, MCV=Hct/RBC*10(6)). A larger Auto vs Manual MCV (>2 fl) in vitro indicates hypertonicity in vivo if the cell counter diluent is isotonic with the threshold for plasma vasopressin (PVP) release and PVP is detectable in plasma (>0.5 pg/ml). To evaluate this principle of concept, hypertonicity was induced by 24-h fluid restriction after a 20 ml/kg water load in four healthy men (20-46 years). Unlike serum and urine indices, the MCV difference-&-PVP index detected hypertonicity in all participants.

View details for DOI 10.1038/sj.ejcn.1602481

View details for Web of Science ID 000242830700022

View details for PubMedID 16855542