Sex differences in skin microvascular structure and function in persons with newly diagnosed hypertension

Aim. To determine sex differences in the structural and functional state of skin microcirculation in individuals with newly diagnosed hypertension.Material and methods. The study included 124 men and 42 women of working age with low or moderate cardiovascular risk and newly diagnosed hypertension. Skin microcirculation was examined on the left upper limb simultaneously by three methods: 1) video capillaroscopy; 2) laser Doppler flowmetry; 3) photoplethysmography.Results. According to video capillaroscopy, in men compared to women, the functional and structural capillary density is lower — 79 vs 89 cap/mm2 (p