The cutaneous circulation is the main effector for human thermoregulation. As exercise leads to enhanced production of heat, skin microcirculation is under competing thermo- and nonthermoregulatory demands. The exact mechanism governing the response of skin blood flow (SkBF) after exercise remains to be elucidated. Furthermore, it has been shown that nonglabrous and glabrous skin sites differ in structural and microvascular characteristics as well as in the type of innervation, especially with regard to the abundance of arteriovenous anastomoses but the exact mechanism has not been established yet. Thus, the aim of our study was to evaluate the response of SkBF to an acute exercise in glabrous and nonglabrous skin sites, respectively. Nine healthy nonsmoking subjects (6 males, 3 females, 20 years old, BMI 21,91±0,44, VO2max 53,22±2,68ml/kg min) participited in the study. SkBF was assessed using laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF) on two measuring skin sites: the finger pulp and the ventral forearm. Simultaneously, skin temperature (T) was recorded on both mesuring sites. Throughout the experiment, a standard ECG as well as blood pressure was recorded. After 5 minutes rest in supine position subjects mounted the cycloergometer and rested for another 5 minutes. The right arm was fixed on an armrest and SkBF probes were positioned at the heart level. Afterwards subjects started a graded exercise until 85% of the estimated maximal heart rate was reached. After ceasing exercising, subject remained in a sitting position and the parameters were measured for subsequent 25 minutes. Values of SkBF, T, RR interval and RR interval difference (RMSSD) were averaged over a 3-min interval and are shown in table 1. After exercise, SkBF at the volar forearm started to diminish and returned to the resting value by the end of the experiment whereas the SkBF in the finger pulp started to rise abruptly and did not return to the baseline values by the end of the experiment. SkBF in the finger pulp raised for 269,6± 60,1AU in 128,3±18,5s after cessation of exercise and T for 4,6±0,6°C in 160±19,6s. The data of a typical response to exercise are presented in fig. 1, where the upper two signals represent the SkBF of finger pulp and volar forearm respectively and the lower two the corresponding skin temperatures. Our results have shown that glabrous and nonglabrous skin sites respond differently to exercise. We might speculate that vasoconstrictor tone in glabrous parts is withdrawn after exercise due to an increase in core temperature. Further experiments are needed to elucidate the exact mechanisms involved in the regulation of SkBF in response to exercise.