Principles of pressure transducers, resonance, damping and frequency response

Blood pressure is a determinant of blood flow, and is the sum of hydrostatic and dynamic pressures. Intravascular pressures can be measured directly using intravascular pressure sensors, or with external transducers connected by a fluid column. Early pressure transducers consisted of wire strain gauges, but these have been superseded by semiconductor devices, which have become increasingly mass-produced and miniaturized, using production techniques common in microelectronics. Performance of pressure-monitoring systems is affected by physical factors including resonance and damping. This article examines the physical principles that underlie transducer design and function, and the sources of error and inaccuracy.