Fluid exchange in the microcirculation

Starling's (1896) hypothesis, that the rate and direction of microvascular fluid exchange is proportional to local differences in hydrostatic pressure and effective colloidal osmotic pressure (or oncotic pressure) across the microvascular walls, has been so well supported by experimental evidence for so long (e.g. Landis, 1927; Pappenheimer & Soto-Rivera, 1948) that it can be called Starling's principle. The representation of Starling's...