INTRACRANIAL COMPENSATORY MECHANISMS FOR VOLUME PERTURBATIONS - A THEORETICAL-ANALYSIS

The proposed mathematical formulation accounts for the role of the absorption and production mechanisms of the intracranial cavity. The transport barrier conduction is governed by the pressure gradients across them and hence by the instantaneous flow rates. The above mentioned mechanisms have now been incorporated into a previous model for static changes in the cranial cavity. The integrated model now evolved is simulated for a constant, bolus and sinusoidal infusion. The output has been correlated to experimentally observed trends. The results that emerge, point to a system whose response is sensitive to the nature of CSF volume perturbations. The production and absorption mechanisms function in a relay configuration, whose primary objective is to maintain the base line CSF pressure values when deviations in pressure occur. These mechanisms have a finite activation time which is dependent on the nature of the volume variation.