Quantitative Evaluation of Sympathetic Nervous System Dysfunction in Patients with Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy
From the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Kumamoto University School of Medicine, Kumamoto, Japan
Correspondence: J. Ide MD, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Kumamoto University School of Medicine 1–1–1 Honjo, Kumamoto 860, Japan.
We observed an increased blood flow but an unchanged vasoconstrictor response in the affected hand in stage 1 of the disorder, but in stage 2 there was a decreased blood flow and a stronger vasoconstriction following an inspiratory gasp. These results suggest that in RSD patients the sympathetic nervous system function is altered and is different in the various stages.
