Regional cutaneous vasodilator responses to rapid and gradual local heating in young adults

Abstract Purpose To examine the extent of regional variations in cutaneous vasodilatation during rapid and gradual local thermal hyperaemia (LTH) in young adults. Methods In thirty young adults (21 ± 3 years, 15 females), cutaneous vascular conductance, normalized to maximum local skin heating at 44 °C (%CVCmax), was assessed at the upper chest, abdomen, dorsal arm, dorsal forearm, thigh, and medial calf during rapid (33–42 °C at 1 °C·20 s−1) and gradual (33–42 °C at 1 °C·5 min−1) LTH on separate days. For both protocols, local temperatures were held at 42 °C for up to 35 min, followed by 20–30 min at 44 °C. During rapid LTH, between-region responses were evaluated at baseline, the initial vasodilator peak, and 42 °C plateau. During gradual LTH, responses were assessed at baseline and the 42 °C plateau. Results There were significant main effects of body region on %CVCmax for the initial peak and plateau during rapid LTH and for the plateau during gradual LTH (all P   0.05). The magnitudes of between-region differences varied across the body (~1–17% range). The greatest effects were observed for the abdomen, wherein responses were consistently lower compared to other regions. Further, responses were consistent between males and females across all body regions and heating phases. Conclusion Regional variations in the cutaneous vasodilator response to local heating are evident for rapid and gradual LTH in young adults, with the largest effects observed for the abdomen, albeit regional differences were similar between sexes.