title: Effect of vibration on skin blood flow in an in vivo microcirculatory model.
abstract: The effect of vibration on skin microcirculation was studied to investigate the possibility of clinical use of vibration to prevent and treat pressure ulcers. Vibrations at a vibrational intensity of 600, 800, or 1,000 mVpp with a fixed frequency of 47 Hz were applied horizontally to the ear of male hairless mice (n = 6 for each group) under inhalation anesthesia. The control group (n = 6) received no vibrations. Venular blood flow was measured by an intravital videomicroscope at the baseline and at 0, 5, and 15 min after the application of vibrations. A significant increase was observed in the 600 mVpp group 5 and 15 min after vibration in comparison to the control group (P = 0.002 and P = 0.046, respectively). We also detected increased blood flow in the 800 mVpp group (P = 0.028) and the 1,000 mVpp group (P = 0.012) 5 min after vibration; however, these increases attenuated after 15 min. These results indicate that direct skin vibration at a frequency of 47 Hz improves skin blood flow. The present study gives further support to the role of vibration on a short-term increase in skin blood flow.
authors.affiliation: Department of Wound Care Management/Gerontological Nursing, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan. gojiron-tky@umin.ac.jp
authors.forename: Gojiro
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Nakagami
authors.forename: Hiromi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sanada
authors.forename: Noriko
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Matsui
authors.forename: Atsuko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kitagawa
authors.forename: Hideki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yokogawa
authors.forename: Naomi
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sekiya
authors.forename: Shigeru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ichioka
authors.forename: Junko
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sugama
authors.forename: Masahiro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shibata
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D006439:Hemodynamics; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008812:Mice, Hairless; D008833:Microcirculation / Q000502:physiology*; D018715:Microscopy, Video; D012039:Regional Blood Flow / Q000502:physiology; D012867:Skin / Q000098:blood supply*; D014732:Vibration