Skin vascular reactivity in healthy subjects: influence of hormonal status

Abstract

To investigate the influence of the hormonal status on skin vascular reactivity, 18 males, 18 women using oral contraceptives (oc), 17 premenopausal, and 18 postmenopausal women were studied. Finger skin temperature (FST, in degrees C) and laser Doppler flux (LDF, in perfusion units) were measured during heating (45 degrees C water bath) and cooling (15 degrees C) followed by a subsequent recovery period. Maximal heat-induced vasodilation was significantly higher in women using oc and in premenopausal women when compared with males. During cooling, FST and LDF were significantly higher in males compared with women using oc and premenopausal women, respectively. FST was also higher in postmenopausal women than in women using oc. During recovery, FST and LDF were significantly higher in males than in women using oc, and LDF was also higher in males than in premenopausal women. These findings are consistent with a less pronounced and less prolonged cold-induced vasoconstriction in males. Other hemodynamic (blood pressure or heart rate) or biological factors (age, amount of subcutaneous fat, hand volume, or body mass index) that possibly influence peripheral blood flow were found not to influence the results. The observed differences in vascular reactivity toward temperature changes between subjects with a different hormonal status suggest that sex hormones influence finger skin perfusion.

Situational impairments to mobile interaction in cold environments

“…Twenty-four participants aged 18 to 35 years (M=24.64, SD=4.55) enrolled (12 male, 12 female). Gender was balanced since literature suggests that it affects physiological response to cold [2,13,36]. We controlled for acclimatisation to cold temperature by ensuring that all participants had lived in cold climates (e.g., Scandinavia) for more than six months.…”

Skin Vasomotor Reflexes during Inspiratory Gasp: Standardization by Spirometric Control Does Not Improve Reproducibility

“…All gave informed consent to the test procedure which was approved by the local ethics committee. The subjects were nonsmokers, took no medi cation (except for oral contraceptives; n = 6) [ 15] and were clinically free from respiratory and cardiovascular disease. Diabetes mellitus was unlikely as a urine test for glucose was negative.…”

Laser Doppler Flowmeter Assessment of Skin Microcirculation in Uremic Patients on Hemodialysis Treatment

“…It has been widely used for studying microcirculation in normal subjects and in a variety of clinical settings [15][16][17][18][19], Histological evidence of small vessels damage is de scribed in uremia [9], but there is only one laser Doppler study of the cutaneous microcirculation in patients with end-stage renal failure [10]. That study showed an impair ment of the cutaneous hyperemic response to local heat ing, which has been attributed to an abnormal stiffening of arteriolar walls and its diffuse intimal thickening.…”