Abstract:
Skin vasomotion is the rhythmic variation of skin microvessel diameter responsible for skin microcirculatory blood flow oscillation, the so called blood flowmotion. Experimental and clinical findings suggest that vasomotion depends on different mechanisms, such as the endothelial activity, the spontaneous myogenic activity of the microvascular wall and the sympathetic activity. Skin vasomotion can be indirectly investigated in humans by means of the spectral analysis of skin laser Doppler flowmetry tracing. A high number of studies have recently investigated skin vasomotion in patients with different vascular diseases, using this method. Findings obtained in these studies have contributed in understanding the pathophysiology of the microcirculatory impairment in the investigated pathological conditions. In my presentation, I'll summarize the method we can use for investigating skin vasomotion in patients and the diagnostic value of this investigation, as well as I'll report my centre experience in this diagnostic approach.

Brief Biography of the Speaker:
Marco Rossi is aggregate professor at the Internal Medicine Department of University of Pisa, Italy. He is responsible for vascular and microcirculatory investigation in the same Department. His main research fields are represented by the study of peripheral microcirculation and by the application of ultrasounds in vascular exploration. He has published more than 200 scientific papers, many in reviewed journals or presented at international conferences. He is a scientific reviewer for several international Journals. He is in the Editorial Board of 'The Open Microcirculation & Microvascular Journal'. He is vice-president of the 'Italian Society Clinical Hemorheology and Microcirculation' and national representative of this society in the 'European Society for Microcirculation'.