Raynaud’s Phenomenon

Raynaud’s phenomenon (RP) is a condition in which the patient’s extremities, such as fingers or toes, initially turn white and numb because of spastic vasoconstriction—drastically restricting blood flow to the area—followed by cyanosis, due to deoxygenation of the static venous blood, and by rubor as a consequence of reactive hyperemia after return of flow. Often, the phenomenon is present without an underlying disease: Primary Raynaud’s Phenomenon (PRP). However, there is also a significant group of patients where Raynaud’s phenomenon is secondary (SRP) to a systemic disease (most frequently systemic sclerosis (SSc) or vibration damage (vibration-induced white Finger syndrome (VWF) or hand-arm vibration syndrome (HAVS)). The typical triphasic color change occurs in about one-third of PRP cases and two-thirds of SRP cases, but there are some RP cases with blanching alone.

Diagnosis of RP can usually be done based on the symptoms alone. However, in some cases there are difficulties in distinguishing between functional and organic vessel disorders. Laser speckle contrast analysis (LASCA), also known as laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) has been shown to be a promising technique for distinguishing between PRP and systemic sclerosis as well as for following the evolution of the disease and response to therapy.
Recommended product PSI NR.

Read more about Finger Pressure.

See the video below for an example of how the PeriCam PSI can be used in the clinic.