Role of gender upon basal and postprandial systemic and splanchnic haemodynamics in humans

Background: Food intake, accompanied by systemic and splanchnic haemodynami c changes, has only been studied in males. The extent to which splanchnic p ostprandial hyperaemia shows gender differences is unknown. Methods: We tes ted 1) the splanchnic hyperaemic response to food in females and 2) whether postprandial haemodynamic changes show gender differences. Twenty-four hea lthy women (aged 20-35 years) and 20 healthy men (aged 21-34 years) partici pated in the study. A liquid test meal (Ensure plus, 1.5 kcal/ml) was perfu sed intraduodenally for 75 min through an enteral feeding tube at a rate of 3 ml/min after a 45-min basal period. Blood Bow parameters were measured u sing Echo-Doppler technology. Results: Basal diastolic arterial blood press ure was significantly (P < 0.05) lower in females (66 +/- 2 versus 72 +/- 2 mmHg), whereas heart rate was the same (58 +/- 2 b/min, ns). Postprandiall y, diastolic blood pressure fell, but reached significance only in males (- 10 +/- 3 mmHg: P < 0.05). Mean velocity in the superior mesenteric artery ( SMA) was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in females compared to males at ba seline (47 +/- 3 versus 39 +/- 2 cm/s), whereas maximal postprandial change s were similar (64 +/- 6 versus 56 +/- 6 cm/s, nsf. Volume flow in the port al vein (PV) at baseline was 656 +/- 29 and 716 +/- 35 ml/min females and m ales, respectively (ns between gender). Maximal postprandial changes amount ed to 808 +/- 86 and 884 +/- 107 ml/min, respectively (ns). Conclusions: 1) Perfusion of a liquid test meal induces significant increases in Row param eters in the SMA and PV in both genders. 2) These changes are partly parall eled by alterations in systemic haemodynamics. 3) Postprandial splanchnic f low parameters are qualitatively and quantitatively not different between g enders.