We administered non-radioactive coloured microspheres (NRACM) to measure the regional tissue blood flow (RTBF) of eight axial pattern flaps and four kidneys in four rabbits using four repeated injections into each animal. As a control, we used radioactive microspheres (RAM) for six kidneys in three rabbits. There were no significant differences for RTBF values between NRACM and RAM, between the numbers of microspheres used (2 x 10(6) and 4 x 10(6)), or between the number of injections. These results showed that NRACM is a useful and safe laboratory method.