Skin capillary appearance and skin microvascular perfusion due to topical application of analgesia cream

Local topical analgesia changes basal skin perfusion and its regulation. In particular, the response induced by local heating, which in nontreated skin comprises a rapidly increased perfusion followed by a normalization within 30 s, is altered to a delayed and persistent perfusion increase. The response dependency to the analgesia cream application time, that is, the intradermal penetration of the analgesics and in which vascular plexa the response occurs, is not known. The aim of this study was to assess changes in the appearance of superficial skin capillaries and skin microvascular perfusion changes due to different application periods of topical analgesia cream (EMLA). Twelve subjects were treated with EMLA and placebo applied to the volar side of each forearm, respectively. The treatment areas were assigned different application times (20 min, 40 min, 1 h, 2 h, and 3 h). The areas were cleared from the creams and shortly thereafter provoked during 9 s with a probe heated to 45 degrees C. To assess capillary number density and skin perfusion, capillary microscopy, and Laser Doppler perfusion imaging (LDPI), respectively, were used. The number density of physiologically active capillary was significantly decreased with longer application times of EMLA (P < 0.005). The LDPI-signal showed a persistent perfusion increase after provocation associated with increasing application time of the cream. This perfusion pattern was not seen after 20 min of treatment, but was present in 9 of 12 subjects after 3 h of treatment. No significant relationship between changes in the capillary number density and the LDF measurement was found. In conclusion, a longer application time and therefore a higher intradermal concentration and a deeper penetration of the analgesics was associated with a delayed and persistent perfusion increase after local heating. There was a discrepancy between changes in capillary number density and skin perfusion, indicating that the perfusion increase does not occur in the capillaries but in the deeper lying vessels. Hence, the contribution of the capillary perfusion to the LDF-signal is smaller than previously anticipated. Capillary number density and presumably their perfusion were decreased with longer application times.