Study of skin vasomotion during phollicular and luteal phase in young healthy women

Abstract

The aim of this study was to evaluate if changes in female sex hormones associated to follicular phase (FP) and luteal phase (LP) may affect skin vasomotion in women with evidence of ovulatory cycle. Nine healthy non-smoker women aged 25+/-4 years, with regular menstrual cycle of 28+/-2 days and evidence of ovulation (indicated by a mid-luteal serum progesterone concentration > 5 ng/ml) (group-1) and six healthy non-smoker healthy women aged 24+/-2 years with evidence of an-ovulatory cycle (group-2) were enrolled in the study. At the times 1 (7th-10th day from the beginning of the last menstrual cycle) and at the time 2 (18th-22th day from the beginning of the last menstrual cycle) forearm skin vasomotion was investigated by means of spectral Fourier analysis of the skin laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF) tracing registered under basal conditions and following acetylcholine (ACh) iontophoresis. The power spectral density (PSD) of the 0.01-0.02, 0.02-0.06 and 0.06-0.2 Hz LDF tracing frequency intervals (related to endothelial-, sympathetic- and myogenic-dependent vasomotion, respectively) was measured in PU2 (LDF perfusion unit)/Hz (1 PU = 10 mV). At the same times skin blood flux response (percentage change from baseline) to ACh and to sodium nitroprusside (SNP) iontophoresis was also investigated. Basal and ACh-stimulated skin vasomotion did not significantly differ between time 1 and time 2 in PSD of the three frequency intervals investigated in both groups, as well as between the two groups at each time of investigation. Similarly, no significant changes were observed in skin vasodilator response to ACh and SNP iontophoresis between time 1 and 2 in each group. These results suggest that the female sex hormone changes associated to the FP and LP in young women with ovulatory cycle do not affect basal and ACh stimulated skin vasomotion as well as the endothelial- and non-endothelial-dependent skin vasoreactivity.