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The paradox of sympathetic vasoconstriction in exercising skeletal muscle
1Department of Anesthesiology, Medical College of Wisconsin, and Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Milwaukee 53295, USA. jbuckwal@mcw.edu
Exercise and Sport Sciences Reviews
|November 2, 2001
Abstract:
Is there sympathetic vasoconstriction in exercising skeletal muscle? Although convincing evidence exists that demonstrates vasoconstriction in active muscle, the proposition that the sympathetic nervous system constricts skeletal muscle during exercise poses a paradox, given the robust vasodilation that occurs in muscle during exercise. Ultimately, muscle perfusion is a balance between metabolic vasodilation and sympathetic vasoconstriction.