Assessing microcirculation dynamics during gait in the lower limb - a preliminary approach

Gait is a daily life activity that requires a permanent combination between skeletal muscle mechanical stimuli with other hemodynamic systems, such as the regulation of blood flow. This is a preliminary study to identify the potential adaptations occurring in the lower limb microcirculation during loading and suspension phases of gait. Six subjects (25.8 ± 5.4) were evaluated during a protocol performed in three phases: 1 minute of both feet support, 1 minute of light steps in the same place and 1 minute similar to the initial phase. Skin microcirculation was noninvasively assessed by the Tissue Viability Imaging® System (TiVi) in both feet (expressed in AU’s). Pulse rate (PR) was measured with a photoplethysmography system (PPG). Descriptive and comparative statistics were applied, and a confidence level of 95% adopted. Our preliminary data detected a physiological variation during gait in the suspension phase of stepping, compared with the loading phase. When the foot is cyclically on the floor, the values are similar to the resting phase. Further studies are needed to look deeper into the microvascular behaviour on the lower limb during the gait cycle.