Induced Vasodilation as Treatment for Raynaud's Disease

Abstract

The efficacy of induced vasodilation as a treatment of idiopathic Raynaud''s disease was examined. Eight persons with Raynaud''s disease and 7 normal persons each receieved 27 simultaneous pairings of hand immersion in warm water (43.degree. C) for 10 min with exposure of the whole body to cold (0.degree. C). A 2nd group of 7 normal persons and 9 persons with Raynaud''s disease received no treatments. All subjects had cold test exposures (0.degree. C) at the start and end of the study. Subjects with Raynaud''s disease who received treatments showed significant increases in digital temperatures (2.2.degree. C) during the cold test compared with the values of untreated subjects with Raynaud''s disease (P < 0.05); normal subjects who had received treatments showed no difference from those who had not. Digital temperatures of subjects with Raynaud''s disease after treatment increased to levels approaching those of normal subjects, although they showed lower digital temperatures during initial exposure to cold (P < 0.01). This therapy offers a practical alternative to traditional treatments.