M. Hirose et al., THE INFLUENCE OF AGING ON SKIN TEMPERATURE AND HEMODYNAMIC-CHANGES DURING SPINAL-ANESTHESIA, Acta anaesthesiologica Scandinavica, 39(7), 1995, pp. 891-895
We investigated the influence of aging on the relationship between art
erial pressure and skin temperature as a simple and indirect indicator
of cutaneous blood flow. Sole and palm skin temperatures, sublingual
temperature, heart rate, mean arterial blood pressure (MAP), and the a
nesthetic level as determined by cold discrimination, were measured be
fore and during minor surgery under spinal anesthesia in patients aged
under 65 years (young group) and above 65 years (elderly group). The
sole skin temperature (T-sole) started to increase in the young group
whose anesthesia level reached above L1-L2, and approached the subling
ual temperature in those whose anesthesia level reached above T8-T10 a
fter spinal injection. There was, however, no relationship between the
anesthesia level and T-sole in the elderly group. There was a signifi
cant linear correlation between the decrease in MAP and the increase i
n T-sole in the young group. The change in T-sole was less in elderly
patients than that in young patients with the same decrease in MAP. Th
ese findings suggest that a decrease in peripheral resistance may not
be the main cause of hypotension during spinal anesthesia in elderly p
atients.