Abstract

Ten normal healthy subjects performed a rhythmic handgrip at 30% MVC (maximal voluntary contraction) with and without arterial occlusion of the same limb. Contralateral forearm and calf venous capacitance were simultaneously measured by venous occlusion plethysmography. During rhythmic handgrip at 30% MVC contralateral venous capacitance decreased by -7.17% in the forearm and by -5.14% in the calf. With arterial occlusion the decreases in venous capacitance were even more pronounced: contralateral forearm -14.4% and calf -13.1%. In a second set of experiments (n = 5) rhythmic handgrip at 30% MVC with arrest of the forearm circulation 5 s prior to the cessation of contraction was applied to examine the influence of chemically sensitive metaboreceptors per se on the evoked limb venoconstriction. During the postexercise arterial occlusion forearm venous volume decreased further to -30.6% whereas calf venous volume increased slightly but remained below the control value. After the cessation of the arterial occlusion both forearm and calf capacitance returned to baseline values. Thus, this study provided evidence that as well as a chemically generated reflex arising from the working muscle, central command was found to be involved in the increase in venomotor tone in the nonexercising limbs during rhythmic handgrip at 30% MVC.