A two-dimensional computer simulation of blood flow between parallel plates was carried out using particle method to investigate effects of red blood cells (RBCs) on blood flow properties. The RBCs and plasma were discretized by the particles that have the characteristics of the elastic membrane and the viscous incompressible fluid, respectively. The simulation results demonstrated that apparent blood flow resistance was affected by hematocrit (HCT) that controlled degree of deformation of RBCs. The lower HCT led to the lower resistance because the RBCs were more concentrated in the center of flow channel due to their larger deformation.
