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Changes in skin blood flow over the foot with warming of the contralateral heel

S Dollberg1, H Atherton, S Hoath

  • 1Department of Neonatology, Lis Maternity Hospital, Tel Aviv, Israel.

Acta Paediatrica (Oslo, Norway : 1992)
|June 17, 1998
PubMed

Insights

Warming the opposite leg of preterm infants does not improve blood flow to the affected leg. This study found no significant difference in skin blood flow, challenging the practice of using heat to treat vasospasm from umbilical artery catheterization.

Area of Science:

  • Neonatal physiology
  • Vascular medicine
  • Pediatric critical care

Background:

  • Umbilical artery catheterization (UAC) is common in preterm infants.
  • UAC can lead to leg vasospasm, a serious complication.
  • Current practice involves warming the contralateral leg to promote blood flow.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate if heating the contralateral extremity induces reflex vasodilation in preterm infants.
  • To determine if this intervention increases peripheral blood flow to the affected limb.

Main Methods:

  • Ten stable preterm infants (no UAC for 2 weeks) were studied.
  • Laser Doppler was used to measure skin perfusion in the distal leg.
  • The contralateral foot was heated to 40.5°C, measuring blood flow before and after.

Main Results:

  • No significant difference in skin blood flow was observed between conditions.
  • Heating the contralateral foot did not induce reflex vasodilation in the contralateral foot.

Conclusions:

  • Direct heat application to one extremity does not induce contralateral reflex vasodilation in preterm infants.
  • The practice of warming the opposite leg to treat UAC-related vasospasm may not be effective.

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