Intracompartmental pressure, PO2, PCO2 and blood flow in the human skeletal muscle.

Measurement of PO2, PCO2, and blood flow in skeletal muscle could be a supplement to examination in clinical practice. Mass spectrometry was utilized to measure these parameters in the resting anterior tibial muscle of healthy adults. The partial pressures of oxygen and carbon dioxide were 21 +/- 3.6 and 46 +/- 2.5 Torr, respectively. The intracompartmental pressure was 8 +/- 1.1 Torr. The oxygen tension in muscle varied only slightly when arterial partial pressure was increased. The blood flow (tissue perfusion coefficient) estimated by washout of an inert gas was 5.4 +/- 0.8 ml/100 g/min. The results are in accordance with those from animal studies of skeletal muscle. The study demonstrates the feasibility of measuring PO2, PCO2, and blood flow in skeletal muscle by mass spectrometry.