Background: Currently, there is not a standardized protocol to evaluate lymphatic function in women. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of arm crank ergometry
(AC) and handgrip contractions (HG) on radiopharmaceutical clearance from the
hands of six healthy females.
Methods and Results: On separate days, subjects performed AC (six repeated bouts of arm cranking for 5 min at 0.6 Watts·kilogram–1 (W·kg–1) followed by 5 min rest) or HG (twelve repeated bouts of 75 contractions in 2.5 min at 50% MVC followed by 2.5 min of rest). HG was done with the right hand only while the left hand served as a control (CON). Prior to the start of exercise, 99mTc-antimony colloid was injected into the first and fourth finger-web of each hand, and 1 min spot views were taken immediately after the injection and then again every 10 min over 60 min. Clearance from the injection sites was linear and expressed as a slope (% administered activity·min–1). Significantly faster clearance was observed with AC (rt = –0.27 ± 0.03 %·min–1; left = –0.29 ± 0.06 %·min–1) compared to both HG (–0.18 ± 0.03 %·min–1) and CON (–0.14 ± 0.05 %·min–1; p = 0.000).
Conclusion: The results indicate that AC may be more effective in promoting lymphatic
clearance from the hand and may be a useful protocol to challenge the lymphatic system in
breast cancer survivors.
