title: Skin flux during reactive hyperemia and local hyperthermia in patients with preeclampsia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To test the contribution of the endothelium to the maximum vasodilatation in patients with preeclampsia and healthy pregnant controls.
  
  
  METHODS
  Laser-Doppler flowmetry, which is a noninvasive method for the continuous measurement of skin blood flow, was used to test the response of skin microcirculation to the above-mentioned stimuli in 14 patients with preeclampsia and 20 normotensive pregnant controls.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In normotensive pregnant controls, the reactive hyperemic response after a 3-minute ischemia in the forearm reaches values of 77 +/- 16% of the maximum vasodilatation, which was induced by local hyperthermia of 42C. In patients with preeclampsia, this response was significantly (P <.05) reduced (43 +/- 9%).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Vascular reactivity is altered in skin vessels of patients with preeclampsia in vivo. This alteration seems to be attributable mainly to the endothelium.
authors.affiliation: University Hospital of Erlangen/Nuremberg, Department of Obstetrics, Erlangen, Germany. ernst.beinder@gyn.med.uni-erlangen.de
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Beinder
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Schlembach
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000503:physiopathology; D005260:Female; D005542:Forearm; D006801:Humans; D006940:Hyperemia / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006979:Hyperthermia, Induced; D007511:Ischemia / Q000150:complications; D017078:Laser-Doppler Flowmetry; D008833:Microcirculation; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D012867:Skin / Q000098:blood supply*; D014664:Vasodilation