Impaired Endothelial Function and Blood Flow in Repetitive Strain Injury

Abstract Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) is a disabling upper extremity overuse injury that may be associated with pathophysiological changes in the vasculature. In this study we investigated whether RSI is associated with endothelial dysfunction and impaired exercise-induced blood flow in the affected forearm. 10 patients with RSI (age, 40.2±10.3; BMI, 23.8±3.3) and 10 gender- and age-matched control subjects (age, 38.0±12.4; BMI, 22.7±3.4) participated in this study. Brachial artery blood flow was measured at rest and during 3-min periods of isometric handgrip exercise at 15%, 30% and 45% of the individual maximal voluntary contraction. Brachial artery endothelial function was assessed as the flow mediated dilation (FMD), by measuring brachial artery diameter and velocity before and after 5-min ischemic occlusion. We found a lower exercise-induced brachial artery blood flow in patients with RSI than in controls (p=0.04). Brachial artery FMD was significantly lower in patients with RSI than in controls (p