Cutaneous Microvascular Flow In the Foot During Simulated Variable Gravities

Our objective was to elucidate how varying gravitational fields affect blood perfusion in the sole of the foot. Human subjects underwent whole-body tilting at four angles: upright (1 G(sub z), 22 deg (.38 G(sub z)), 10 deg (.17 G(sub z)), and supine (0 G(sub z)), simulating the gravitational fields of Earth, Mars, Moon, and microgravity, respectively. Cutaneous capillary blood flow was monitored on the plantar surface of the heel by laser Doppler flowmetry while weight bearing load was measured beneath the same foot with a calibrated scale. Foot mean arterial pressures (MAP) were calculated by adding estimated hydrostatic pressures to continuously recorded heart-level blood pressures for each subject. At each tilt angle, subjects increased weight bearing on one foot in graded load increments of one kilogram beginning with zero. The weight bearing at which null flow first occurred was determined as the closing load (CL). Subsequently, the weight bearing was reduced in reverse steps until blood flow returned (opening load, OL). CL and OL were normalized to each subject's body weight and expressed as percent of body weight. Mean CLs (SD in parentheses) for simulated Earth, Mars, Moon, and micro-gravities were 14 (5), 8 (2), 6 (2), and 5 (2) percent of body weight, respectively. OLs were 12 (3), 6 (1), 5 (2), and 4 (1), respectively. Calculated foot MAPs for each simulated gravitational field were 192 (19), 127 (12), 106 (10), and 87 (9) mm Hg, respectively. CL and OL were significantly correlated with foot MAP (r = 0.70, 0.72, respectively). Overall, CL and OL were significantly different (p is less than 0.001). The data suggest that decreased local arterial pressure in the foot lowers tolerance to external compression. Consequently, the human foot sole may be more prone to cutaneous ischernia during loading in microgravity than on Earth.