Prolonged physical inactivity leads to a drop in toe skin temperature during local cold stress

Abstract

The purpose was to examine the effects of a prolonged period of recumbency on the toe temperature responses during cold-water foot immersion. Ten healthy males underwent 35 days of horizontal bed rest. The right foot of the subjects was assigned as the experimental (EXP) foot. To prevent bed rest-induced vascular deconditioning in the left control foot (CON), a sub-atmospheric vascular pressure countermeasure regimen was applied on the left lower leg for 4 × 10 min every second day. On the first (BR-1) and the last (BR-35) day of the bed rest, subjects performed two 30 min foot immersion tests in 8 °C water, one with the EXP foot and the other with the CON foot. The tests were conducted in counter-balanced order and separated by at least a 15 min interval. At BR-35, the average skin temperature of the EXP foot was lower than at BR-1 (-0.8 °C; P = 0.05), a drop that was especially pronounced in the big toe (-1.6 °C; P = 0.05). In the CON foot, the average skin temperature decreased by 0.6 °C in BR-35, albeit the reduction was not statistically significant (P = 0.16). Moreover, the pressure countermeasure regimen ameliorated immersion-induced thermal discomfort for the CON foot (P = 0.05). Present findings suggest that severe physical inactivity exaggerates the drop in toe skin temperature during local cold stress, and thus might constitute a potential risk factor for local cold injury.

Adversity of prolonged extreme cold exposure among adult clients diagnosed with coronary artery diseases: a primer for recommending community health nursing intervention

“…Common safety measures practiced by the informants were physical protection through clothing (Tourula, Isola, Hassi, Bloigu, & Rintamäki, ), such as: (i) wearing a jacket, socks and multiple blankets against severe cold; (ii) drinking hot beverages like coffee and lukewarm water; and (iii) eating hot food and soup. Exercises and mobility to cope by producing body heat (Amundsen, Rognmo, Hatlen‐Rebhan, & Slordahl, ; Keramidas, Kölegård, Eiken, & Mekjavic, ) were also emphasized through body movements like dancing and vigorous working by cutting wood, sweeping the yard, cleaning the house and continuous paddling when in boat while fishing. Refraining from being exposed to cold surfaces, substances and places was also stressed by the informants.…”

“…Keramidas et al. () assert that smoking and alcohol consumption are high‐risk factors that trigger dynamic cold injuries that diminish peripheral vasomotor function and may cause permanent disabilities. Cold temperature contributes to the concentration of the chemical substances of the cigarette and liquor; therefore, the effect causes further vasoconstriction blood vessels resulting to enormous damages.…”

“…Moreover, rest and medication to ease discomforts or avoid further complications were used. However, two of the informants openly shared that smoking and drinking liquor are their effective methods to combat and overcome extreme cold despite the side effect they may cause Keramidas et al (2014). assert that smoking and alcohol consumption are high-risk factors that trigger dynamic cold injuries that diminish peripheral vasomotor function and may cause permanent disabilities.…”

Hand temperature responses to local cooling after a 10‐day confinement to normobaric hypoxia with and without exercise

“…Considering the adverse effects of physical inactivity on the temperature responses of the extremities during local cold provocation (Keramidas et al., ), it might be argued that the limited amount of physical activity of the HA group could have led to a vascular deconditioning, which in turn contributed to the impaired hand vasomotor function. However, the similar pre‐ and post‐PPO values, and the supporting evidence of a previous study with the same experimental design (Kounalakis et al., ) appear to eliminate the possibility of such a deconditioning effect.…”

Responses of the hands and feet to cold exposure

“… 100 Contrasting this beneficial effect of improved fitness, Keramidis et al. 101 also tested the other extreme of local cold response with prolonged inactivity, using a 35-day bedrest model that decreased peak oxygen uptake by 18% (see Fig. 4 ).…”