Dynamic Changes on Video-capillaroscopy and Potential Microsurgical Application: Temperature and Skin Surface...

Area of Science:

• Microsurgery
• Vascular Biology
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Video-capillaroscopy is a promising tool for monitoring microsurgical flaps.
• The impact of temperature on capillary changes during video-capillaroscopy is not well understood.
• Understanding these changes is crucial for accurate flap assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the effect of temperature on skin capillary parameters using video-capillaroscopy.
• To compare capillary changes in different anatomical regions at normal and reduced temperatures.
• To inform best practices for video-capillaroscopy in microsurgical monitoring.

Main Methods:

• Video-capillaroscopy was performed on 20 healthy individuals across five anatomical regions (thigh, forearm, mid-axillary line, abdomen, fingertips).
• Measurements of blood vessel area and blood flow velocity were taken at normal body temperature and after cooling.
• ImageJ software was utilized for quantitative analysis of capillary parameters.

Main Results:

• Cooling significantly reduced blood vessel area and blood flow velocity across all regions (P < 0.001).
• The rate of vessel area reduction varied significantly among anatomical regions (P < 0.001).
• Significant differences in blood flow velocity were observed between various anatomical pairs post-cooling.

Conclusions:

• Decreased skin temperature induces significant vasoconstriction and reduced capillary flow velocity.
• Maintaining a warm environment during video-capillaroscopy is essential to prevent false diagnoses of vascular occlusion.
• These findings highlight the critical role of temperature control in accurate microsurgical flap monitoring.