Responses in acral and non-acral skin vasomotion and temperature during lowering of ambient temperature

• Published in: Journal of thermal biology 2014-10, Vol.45, p.168-174
• Main Authors: Elstad, Maja, Vanggaard, Leif, Lossius, Astrid H, Walløe, Lars, Kristin Bergersen, Tone
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adjustment; Ambient temperature; Amplitudes; Arteriovenous anastomoses; Arteriovenous Anastomosis - physiology; Blood flow; Cold Temperature; Cold-Shock Response; Cooling; Female; Fingers; Fingers - blood supply; Fingers - physiology; Fluctuation; Flux; Humans; Laser Doppler flux; Male; Regional Blood Flow; Skin - blood supply; Skin perfusion; Skin Temperature; Temperature regulation; Vasoconstriction; Young Adult
• ISSN: 0306-4565; 1879-0992
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2014.09.003

Arteriovenous anastomoses (AVA) in acral skin (palms and soles) have a huge capacity to shunt blood directly from the arteries to the superficial venous plexus of the extremities. We hypothesized that acral skin, which supplies blood to the superficial venous plexus, has a stronger influence on blood flow adjustments during cooling in thermoneutral subjects than does non-acral skin. Thirteen healthy subjects were exposed to stepwise cooling from 32°C to 25°C and 17°C in a climate chamber. Laser Doppler flux and skin temperature were measured simultaneously from the left and right third finger pulp and bilateral upper arm skin. Coherence and correlation analyses were performed of short-term fluctuations at each temperature interval. The flux from finger pulps showed the synchronous spontaneous fluctuations characteristic of skin areas containing AVAs. Fluctuation frequency, amplitude and synchronicity were all higher at 25°C than at 32°C and 17°C (p