Sex-Related Features of Peripheral Haemodynamics in Students

Abstract

One of the urgent problems of modern physiology is the study of sex-related differences, including peripheral haemodynamics. It should be noted that in women the functional state of the body’s visceral systems, including the cardiovascular system, is influenced by the hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle. The purpose of this article was to study sex-related characteristics of peripheral haemodynamics in the shoulder–forearm part in young people. Materials and methods. The research involved 50 male and 50 female students of Ivanovo State Medical University aged 18 to 20 years. The women were examined during the follicular and luteal phases of the menstrual cycle, whose average length was 29.22 ± 0.32 days. Peripheral blood flow in two adjacent segments of the upper extremities (shoulder and forearm) were studied using the Reo-Spektr hardware and software complex (Neurosoft, Ivanovo, Russia). Rheovasograms were recorded for 5 minutes in the supine position. Results. A comparative analysis of the results of the study allowed us to establish the following patterns. The rate and intensity of vascular filling in the upper extremities in women, both in the follicular and in luteal phases of the menstrual cycle, are higher than in men, which is determined by the smaller diameter of the vessels and may be associated with both anatomical characteristics and higher vascular wall tone in women. Peripheral haemodynamics in female students largely depends on the phase of the menstrual cycle: vascular filling rate in the luteal phase is higher than in the follicular phase.

Keywords

• cardiovascular system
• sex-related characteristics of peripheral haemodynamics
• follicular phase
• luteal phase
• rheovasography
• young people