The purpose of this study was to dissect the relative contribution of arteriovenous hemodynamics, the venoarteriolar response (VAR), and the myogenic reflex leading to a decrease in local blood flow induced by venous congestion. Skin blood flow (SkBF) was measured in 12 supine healthy subjects (7 males and 5 females; 35±9 years, mean±SD) via laser-Doppler flowmetry: 1) over areas of forearm and calf skin in which the VAR was blocked by using Eutectic Mixture of Local Anesthetics (EMLA, 2.5% lidocaine and 2.5% prilocaine, EMLA sites); and 2) over the contralateral forearm or calf skin (Control sites), using two different techniques: limb dependency of 23-37 cm below the heart, and cuff inflation to 40 mmHg. We found that during limb dependency SkBF decreased by 45±9% in the forearm, and by 40±20% in the calf at the Control sites (both P<0.001), whereas SkBF remained unchanged at the EMLA sites (forearm, -5±23%, P=0.973; calf, -2±32%, P=0.825). In contrast, during cuff inflation, SkBF decreased by 57±13% in the forearm, and by 54±13% in the calf at the Control sites, while it also decreased at the EMLA sites by 34±11% in the forearm, and by 37±17% in the calf (all P<0.001). The percent change in SkBF from baseline was significantly greater during cuff inflation than limb dependency at both the Control sites (forearm, P=0.003; calf, P=0.011) and the EMLA sites (forearm and calf, P<0.001). Estimated skin vascular resistance remained unchanged at the EMLA sites during cuff inflation as well as limb dependency both in the forearm and the calf. These data suggest that the decrease in SkBF during venous congestion with cuff inflation is not solely due to the cutaneous VAR, but also to a reduction in local perfusion pressure between arteries and veins. The VAR is therefore most specifically quantified by venous congestion induced by limb dependency, rather than cuff inflation. Finally, from both techniques (based on the assumption that each mechanism of the decrease in SkBF is additive), we calculated that during venous congestion induced by limb dependency (calf), ~45% of the non-baroreflex vasoconstriction is induced by the VAR and ~55% by the myogenic reflex.