Effect of a local cold stress on peripheral temperatures of Inuit, Oriental, and Caucasian subjects.

Male subjects comprised of six Inuit from Igloolik, N.W.T., and five Orientals and six Caucasians from Toronto, Ont., volunteered for tests to determine the effect of localized cold stress on peripheral temperatures. In each subject, skin temperatures of the right index finger, the arm, and the cheek, as well as blood pressure and heart rate, were measured before, during, and after foot immersion in water of 10 degrees C temperature for 10 min. There was an immediate decrease in finger temperature on foot immersion in all three subject groups; however, the Inuit finger temperatures recovered very quickly to control values, the Caucasian finger temperatures began to increase after decreasing for 7.5 min, and the Oriental finger temperatures decreased continuously during the foot immersion and remained cool even 10 min after the removal of the cold stimulus. The cold stimulus did not affect the cheek or arm temperatures of any of the groups. In all subjects, systolic and diastolic blood pressures and heart rates increased on foot immersion, gradually returning towards normal values. No intergroup differences were seen in these parameters.