Reliability of the hyperaemic response to passive leg movement in young, healthy women

NEW FINDINGS: What is the central question of this study? This is the first study to assess the day-to-day reliability of passive leg movement-induced hyperaemia (PLM-H), an index of lower-limb microvascular function, in young, healthy women. What is the main finding and its importance? Passive leg movement-induced hyperaemia demonstrated good day-to-day reliability, comparable to other common indices of endothelial function, supporting the use of PLM-H to assess lower-limb microvascular function in women. ABSTRACT: Passive leg movement-elicited hyperaemia (PLM-H) provides an index of lower-limb microvascular function. However, there is currently limited information regarding the reliability of PLM-H and no reliability information specific to women. The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of PLM-H in women on two separate days. Seventeen young, healthy women [22 ± 3 years old (mean ± SD)] participated in two identical visits including three trials of PLM. Using duplex ultrasound, PLM-H was characterized by six indices: peak leg blood flow (LBF) and vascular conductance (LVC), peak change above baseline (Δpeak) for LBF and LVC, and area under the curve above baseline (AUC) during the first 60 s of PLM for LBF and LVC. The results demonstrated good day-to-day reliability of PLM-H characterized as peak LBF [r = 0.84, P < 0.001; intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) = 0.84; coefficient of variation (CV) = 13.2%], peak LVC (r = 0.82, P < 0.001; ICC = 0.79; CV = 14.4%), Δpeak LBF (r = 0.83, P < 0.001; ICC = 0.82; CV = 17.8%) and Δpeak LVC (r = 0.83, P < 0.001; ICC = 0.80; CV = 16.5%). Characterization of PLM as AUC demonstrated moderate day-to-day reliability: AUC LBF (r = 0.71, P < 0.05; ICC = 0.70; CV = 31.2%) and AUC LVC (r = 0.78, P < 0.001; ICC = 0.74; CV = 27.1%). In conclusion, this study demonstrates that PLM-H has good reliability as an index of microvascular function; however, characterization of PLM-H as peak, Δpeak LBF and LVC is more reliable than AUC.