ArticleBlood flow response to electrically induced twitch and tetanic lower-limb muscle contractions1
Section snippets
Participants
Twelve men (age, 25.1±3.0y; height, 1.83±0.05m; body mass, 79.2±11.8kg) volunteered to participate in the study. All subjects indicated, by completing a questionnaire, that they were healthy and not using prescription medications. All had normal resting heart rates and blood pressure. After being informed of the purpose, procedures, and possible risks of the study, subjects signed an informed consent statement, approved by the institutional review board.
Protocol
The subjects maintained a supine position
Results
Figure 2 shows resting and postcontraction blood flow values for the 5 different ES conditions. The Vmean significantly increased from resting values for the tetanic 2-leg (84%), tetanic 1-leg (95%), and 3-Hz (62%) conditions, but not for the 1-Hz twitch condition or the 35-Hz stimulation of the contralateral leg. Results from the GLM analysis indicated a significant (P<.001) difference among the 5 ES conditions in the change from rest for Vmean. The pairwise comparisons revealed that the
Discussion
In humans, both 35-Hz tetanic and 3-Hz twitch contractions led to an increase in blood flow to the stimulated leg muscles, whereas 1-Hz twitch contractions did not augment muscle blood flow and stimulation of the ipsilateral leg muscles did not change blood flow in the contralateral inactive leg. This knowledge is important for clinical application of ES to improve circulation.
Conclusion
In humans, both 35-Hz tetanic and 3-Hz twitch contractions can markedly increase blood flow in the femoral artery, whereas 1-Hz twitch contractions cannot adequately augment muscle blood flow. Because the 3-Hz contractions produced blood flow elevations not significantly different from those seen with tetanic contractions, but with less discomfort and possibly less fatigue, the 3-Hz twitch contraction mode seems to be preferable for therapeutic interventions aiming on blood flow increase.
Acknowledgements
We appreciate the assistance of Sarah Floris in the data collection and analysis. The 8-channel stimulator was built by William Couch.
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