A research team led by MedUni Vienna has shown in a study that purely optical measurements of the viscosity of blood plasma may provide information about the severity and progression of COVID-19. The employed technique, Brillouin light scattering spectroscopy, can analyze the smallest amounts of plasma in less than a second, making it a promising method for monitoring severely ill patients. The research work was recently published in the scientific journal "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences" (PNAS).
It is well known in medical science that the viscosity of the liquid component of blood (plasma) can provide valuable information about various diseases. A research team led by Kareem Elsayad from MedUni Vienna's Center for Anatomy and Cell Biology has now shown that purely optical measurements are able to quickly detect this diagnostic marker. The technique used in the study, known as Brillouin light scattering spectroscopy (BLS), uses light to obtain information about the viscosity of the plasma by analyzing the interactions of light with naturally occurring acoustic (hypersonic) waves in the sample.
Using this technique, the researchers found that there were significant differences in the measured viscosity and temperature dependence of the viscosity, of blood samples from COVID-19 patients. "The differences were particularly notable at temperatures above 38 degrees Celsius, and appear to be associated with changes in the physical properties of some of the constit.