Vascular Responses in Glabrous and Nonglabrous Skin During Acute Mental Stress in Physically Trained Humans

Acute mental stress induces sympathetic activation and influences vasomotor control in various organs. In the present study, to better understand the effect of physical training on peripheral vasomotor control during acute mental stress, we compared the skin vascular responses to mental arithmetic (MA) in physically trained and untrained humans. Eight physically trained (T group) and eight untrained (UT group) healthy volunteers performed 2min of MA aloud in the supine position under a thermoneutral condition (28℃). Skin blood flow (laser-Doppler flowmetry) and local temperature were monitored at the glabrous (palm, sole) and nonglabrous (forearm, calf) sites. Cutaneous vascular conductance (CVC) was evaluated from the ratio of blood flow to mean arterial pressure (tonometry). Local sweating rate (SR) was measured in the sole and calf by the ventilated capsule method. In the T group, the CVC at glabrous sites consistently decreased (P