Capillary effect – what is that? | Capillary

Capillary effect – what is that?

Capillary effect is the term used to describe the behavior of liquids in which they are pulled upwards in a thin tube against gravity, for example. If you place a thin glass tube vertically in the water, you can observe how the water in the tube moves a little bit upwards. This effect can be explained by the surface tension of liquids.

In addition, the interfacial tension between the liquid and the solid wall of the tube or the adhesion force plays a decisive role. The capillary effect is also important in human capillaries. Since the blood pressure in these small blood vessels is very low, the capillary effect helps to transport the blood further in the capillaries.

Inflammation of capillaries

An inflammation of blood vessels is called vasculitis. Vasculitis can affect any type of blood vessel, large or small. These inflammatory diseases of the blood vessels are usually autoimmune diseases.

This means that the body’s own immune system has an incorrect reaction to the body’s own tissue and an inflammatory reaction occurs. In rare cases, drugs or infections caused by bacteria or fungi can also cause inflammation of the blood vessels. Vasculitis can also be caused by other diseases, such as rheumatic diseases.