The supply of oxygen and nutrients to tissues is performed by the blood system, and involves a net leakage of fluid outward at the capillary level. One of the principal functions of the lymphatic system is to gather this fluid and return it to the blood system to maintain overall fluid balance. Fluid in the interstitial spaces is often at subatmospheric pressure, and the return points into the venous system are at pressures of approximately 20 cmH2O. This adverse pressure difference is overcome by the active pumping of collecting lymphatic vessels, which feature closely spaced one-way valves and contractile muscle cells in their walls. Passive vessel squeezing causes further pumping. The dynamics of lymphatic pumping have been investigated experimentally and mathematically, revealing complex behaviours indicating that the system performance is robust against minor perturbations in pressure and flow. More serious disruptions can lead to incurable swelling of tissues called lymphœdema.

中文翻译：

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淋巴系统流量

向组织提供氧气和营养物质是由血液系统完成的，涉及到毛细血管水平向外的液体净泄漏。淋巴系统的主要功能之一是收集这种液体并将其返回血液系统以保持整体液体平衡。间隙空间中的液体通常处于低于大气压的压力下，而进入静脉系统的回流点的压力约为 20 cmH2O。这种不利的压力差通过收集淋巴管的主动泵送来克服，淋巴管具有紧密间隔的单向瓣膜和壁中的可收缩肌肉细胞。被动容器挤压导致进一步泵送。淋巴泵的动力学已经通过实验和数学进行了研究，揭示了复杂的行为，表明系统性能对于压力和流量的微小扰动是稳健的。更严重的破坏会导致无法治愈的组织肿胀，称为淋巴水肿。