A NUMERICAL-METHOD TO DETERMINE ERYTHROCYTE DEFORMABILITY DISTRIBUTION USING DATA FROM FRAUNHOFER LIGHT-DIFFRACTION

A technique based on Fraunhofer diffraction by suspended particles is applied in this paper to develop a numerical process to assess informa tion about the erythrocyte deformability distribution over a populatio n of more than six millions cells. The ability to evaluate the full di stribution rather than just a mean deformability of erythrocytes allow s better assessment of the erythrocyte rheologic capabilities. In orde r to determine both standard deviation and mean of erythrocyte populat ion deformability, the experimental profile of intensities was matched with a theoretical one. This theoretical profile has been drawn by co mbining theoretical intensities corresponding to the dimensions of eac h deformed cell class and assuming a normal distribution. The method h as been verified by analyzing mixtures of known proportions of normal erythrocyte and hardened spherocytes. Normal and pathological erythroc ytes population were also analyzed and their respective deformability distributions are presented.