THE ROLE OF SYMPATHETIC REACTIVITY IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF RAYNAUDS SYNDROME

Finger skin blood flow was studied in 131 patients with Raynaud's synd rome using laser Doppler flowmetry. Scleroderma systematica, systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, Sjogren's disease, mixed co nnective tissue lesions, Raynaud's disease were diagnosed in 61, 17, 1 0, 10, 10 and 13 examinees, respectively. Control consisted of 20 heal thy subjects. The response of the blood flow was registered in respons e to functional tests activating sympathetic nervous system: indirect cooling, emotional stress, deep inhalation, Valsalva's test. Hyperresp onse to the above sympathetic stimulation was noted in none of the gro ups studied. In scleroderma systematica the reactivity significantly d ecreased with longer disease duration. It is clear that the study did not confirm the leading role of sympathetic hyperactivity in Raynaud's syndrome pathogenesis.