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. 2023 Jun 13;59(6):1141.
doi: 10.3390/medicina59061141.

Autonomic and Vascular Responses during Reactive Hyperemia in Healthy Individuals and Patients with Sickle Cell Anemia

Erislandis López-Galán  1 , Adrián Alejandro Vitón-Castillo  2 , Ramón Carrazana-Escalona  3 , Maylet Planas-Rodriguez  1 , Adolfo Arsenio Fernández-García  4 , Ileana Cutiño-Clavel  1 , Alexander Pascau-Simon  5 , Philippe Connes  6 , Miguel Enrique Sánchez-Hechavarría  7   8 , Gustavo Alejandro Muñoz-Bustos  9
Affiliations

Autonomic and Vascular Responses during Reactive Hyperemia in Healthy Individuals and Patients with Sickle Cell Anemia

Erislandis López-Galán et al. Medicina (Kaunas). .

Abstract

Background and Objectives: To compare autonomic and vascular responses during reactive hyperemia (RH) between healthy individuals and patients with sickle cell anemia (SCA). Materials and Methods: Eighteen healthy subjects and 24 SCA patients were subjected to arterial occlusion for 3 min at the lower right limb level. The pulse rate variability (PRV) and pulse wave amplitude were measured through photoplethysmography using the Angiodin® PD 3000 device, which was placed on the first finger of the lower right limb 2 min before (Basal) and 2 min after the occlusion. Pulse peak intervals were analyzed using time-frequency (wavelet transform) methods for high-frequency (HF: 0.15-0.4) and low-frequency (LF: 0.04-0.15) bands, and the LF/HF ratio was calculated. Results: The pulse wave amplitude was higher in healthy subjects compared to SCA patients, at both baseline and post-occlusion (p < 0.05). Time-frequency analysis showed that the LF/HF peak in response to the post-occlusion RH test was reached earlier in healthy subjects compared to SCA patients. Conclusions: Vasodilatory function, as measured by PPG, was lower in SCA patients compared to healthy subjects. Moreover, a cardiovascular autonomic imbalance was present in SCA patients with high sympathetic and low parasympathetic activity in the basal state and a poor response of the sympathetic nervous system to RH. Early cardiovascular sympathetic activation (10 s) and vasodilatory function in response to RH were impaired in SCA patients.

Keywords: autonomic nervous system; pulse rate variability; pulse wave amplitude; sickle cell anemia.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic of physiological measurements in a photoplethysmography recording of the arterial pulse wave.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Pulse wave amplitude in the basal state and during the post-occlusion hyperemia test.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Dynamic autonomic response: time–frequency analysis of pulse rate variability during the post-occlusion reactive hyperemia test in healthy individuals and SCA patients.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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