Spectral analysis of skin laser Doppler blood perfusion signal during cutaneous hyperemia in response to acetylcholine iontophoresis and ischemia in normal subjects.

Spectral analysis of skin laser Doppler (LD) signal was performed using Fourier transformation in twelve healthy subjects in order to compare post-ischemic hyperemia and acetylcholine (ACh) iontophoresis tests for the exploration of cutaneous microcirculatory endothelial function. Within the frequency range studied of 0.009-1.6 Hz, five different frequency intervals were considered, arising from local (endothelial and myogenic) and central (neural, respiratory and cardiac) regulatory mechanisms. The power density (PD) for each of the five frequency intervals considered was measured in perfusion units (PU)/Hz, in each subject, before and in response to ischemia and to ACh iontophoresis, using a dedicated software. The relative contribution of each frequency interval was calculated as per cent rate between each PD and the sum of the PD of the five frequency interval considered. PD of LD signals in response to ischemia and Ach iontophoresis significantly increased for all the five frequency intervals considered. A significant increase (from 25.0+/-6.3 to 48.3+/-17.8; p<0.01) in the relative contribution of 0.009-0.02 frequency interval, referred to endothelium activity, was observed only in response to ACh iontophoresis. No significant increase in the relative power contribution was observed in response to ischemia for any of the five frequency intervals considered. These data suggest that ACh iontophoresis test is more adequate than post-ischemic hyperemia test in exploring the skin microcirculatory endothelial function in normal subjects.