Some properties of human and other synovial fluids

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Abstract
Viscosity measurements were made on a small series of traumatic and pathological synovial fluids from human knee joints; also on 3 samples from ankle joints of normal sheep. Sedimentation measurements were made on a few of these fluids. Comparison of variation of viscosity with velocity gradient, with its value at zero velocity gradient, suggests the existence of inter-species and possibly intra-species differences in the specific properties of hyaluronic acid. Sedimentation measurements appear to confirm this and suggest that human hyaluronic acids have considerably lower particle weights (1 - 4 x 106) than those of sheep (5 - 6 x 106) or ox (107). Specific properties of human synovial fluid hyaluronic acid cannot be satisfactorily compared on a basis of concentration estimated from weight of mucin.