Compartment syndrome (CS) occurs when the pressure in an enclosed compartment increases due to tissue swelling or internal bleeding. As the intra-compartmental pressure (ICP) builds up, the blood flow to the tissue or the organ is compromised, resulting in ischemia, necrosis and damage to the nerves and other tissues. At the present there are no established diagnostic procedures, and clinical observations such as pain, paralysis and even compartment pressure monitoring are an unreliable determinant of the presence of the syndrome. Late diagnosis may result in fasciotomy, neurological dysfunctions, amputation and even death. Focusing on the frequently occurring CS of the lower leg, this work is aimed toward introducing a coherent, mechanically motivated analysis of the disease within the framework of poroelasticity. The fascia enclosing the compartment is treated as an inextensible and impermeable layer, and the tissue inside the compartment is represented as a fully saturated poroelastic solid. The model quantitatively predicts the highly non-uniform ICP buildup as a function of both time and location. These findings, which are in good agreement with clinical observations reported in the literature, shed light on the difficulties associated with the identification of the syndrome and may assist in improved diagnostic procedures.

中文翻译：

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车厢综合症：车厢内压力是早期诊断的可靠指标吗？

当密闭隔室中的压力由于组织肿胀或内部出血而增加时，就会发生车厢综合症（CS）。随着房内压力（ICP）的建立，流向组织或器官的血流受到损害，从而导致局部缺血，坏死以及对神经和其他组织的损害。目前，尚无确定的诊断程序，临床观察如疼痛，麻痹甚至隔室压力监测均不能可靠地确定该综合征的存在。晚期诊断可能导致筋膜切开术，神经功能障碍，截肢甚至死亡。着眼于经常发生的小腿CS，这项工作旨在在多孔弹性的框架内对疾病进行机械地，连贯的分析。封闭隔室的筋膜被视为不可延伸且不可渗透的层，隔室内部的组织被表示为完全饱和的多孔弹性固体。该模型定量地预测高度不均匀的ICP堆积随时间和位置的变化。这些发现与文献报道的临床观察结果非常吻合，阐明了与综合征识别有关的困难，并可能有助于改善诊断程序。