Artery Research

Clinically revealed, non-uniform distribution of peripheral vascular diseases throughout the arterial tree suggests that haemodynamic forces can modulate the endothelial dysfunction. In the present study the bilateral differences of deep (DFA) and superficial (SFA) femoral artery blood velocity waveform...

Background: Collateral coronary flow may protect patients against myocardial ischemia. There is no data regarding the difference in collateral development in relationship to coronary dominance and potential influence on outcome. We aimed to investigate whether there is a relationship between coronary...

Objective: To compare the simultaneous invasive and non-invasive measurements of blood pressure (IBP and NIBP) based upon the Multiparameter Intelligent Monitoring in Intensive Care II (MIMIC II) database. Methods and results: A total of 986 records and 26,942 blood pressure (BP) measurements were extracted...

Background: Atherosclerosis is an inflammatory disorder in which infectious agents are incriminated as contributors. It is suggested that Helicobacter pylori may be a risk factor of atherosclerosis. Methods: This study was performed whether there are differences between coronary artery with and without...

Although the effects of smoking on hemodynamics and arterial stiffness has already been evaluated from many aspects, self-controlled and 24-h data have remained a missing area. Ten healthy light smokers were examined in a cross-sectional observational study for 48 h [smoking was prohibited during the...

Background: Arterial stiffness is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. There has been no previous research comparing the acute changes to arterial stiffness following aerobic exercise in different groups of athletes. The aim of this study was to compare the acute effect of aerobic exercise...

This study aimed to investigate whether a single bout of Self-myofascial Release (SMR) has a beneficial effect on peripheral and central Blood Pressure (BP) and different parameters of arterial stiffness. Twenty nine healthy male recreational athletes (26.1 ± 2.9 years, BMI 23.4 ± 1.5 kg/m2) completed...

Background: Reflected pressure waves from the lower body to the heart in overweight subjects return early and augment aortic systolic pressure and increase left ventricular (LV) afterload and wasted energy. Methods: Central aortic pressure waves were generated from radial artery pressure waves recorded...

Background: Mental stress is a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. However, little is known about the impact of mental stress on arterial function in middle-aged and older adults. Objective: This study is aimed to investigate the association between mental stress and arterial function in this population. Methods:...

Hybrid reservoir-wave models assume that the measured arterial pressure can be separated into two additive components, reservoir/windkessel and excess/wave pressure waveforms. Therefore, the effect of the reservoir volume should be excluded to properly quantify the effects of forward/backward-travelling...

Background: There are very limited data on the day-to-day variability and virtually no data on within-subject measurement variation of carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (c-fPWV). Therefore, we conducted this study in healthy volunteers to measure both day-to-day variability and day-to-day within-subject...

Background: The recommendation for carotid–femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) is to use a calliper to measure the aortic length as a straight line. In adults, it has been shown that tape follows the body contours potentially making the distance longer – ultimately a higher cfPWV – interpreted as a higher...

Background: Carotid-femoral Pulse Wave Velocity (cfPWV) is the gold-standard measure of arterial stiffness. Accuracy of non-invasive cfPWV as meters per second is impeded by surface estimates of aortic length. Our aim was to compare cfPWV measured using distance estimated from surface measurements with...

Central Systolic Blood Pressure (cSBP) and Central Augmentation Index (cAIx) have been independently associated with cardiovascular risk in adults, and can be estimated using a generalized peripheral-to-central transfer function. We hypothesize that transfer function accuracy and precision will be influenced...

Whether arterial stiffness is a surrogate end-point for cardiovascular and renal disease has never been directly demonstrated by a controlled clinical trial. Our main hypothesis is a better prevention of outcomes in high risk hypertensives with PWV normalization driven strategy than with usual blood...

Although brachial systolic blood pressure (SBP) is the overall best predictor of future cardiovascular risk for the entire hypertensive population, there is much that can be learned from assessing diastolic blood pressure (DBP) in relation to simultaneous levels of SBP, because the former is not distorted...

Introduction: In adults, aging is associated with a rise in blood pressure (BP) and a disproportionate increase in central systolic blood pressure (cSBP) relative to brachial SBP (bSBP) (i.e. reduced aortic to radial pulse pressure amplification (PPamp)). But changes in brachial and central BP have not...

Background: In-vivo assessment of aortic characteristic impedance (Zao) and total arterial compliance (CT) has been hampered by the need for invasive methods to access simultaneous recordings of aortic pressure and flow, wall thickness, and cross-sectional area. In contrast, regional pulse wave velocity...

Background: Individuals whose arteries appears abnormally healthy in comparison to their CV risk factor burden (supernormal vascular aging, SUPERNOVA) represent an ideal model to discover novel pathways of cardiovascular protection. Purpose: 1) to introduce a novel definition of vascular age, as predicted...

Purpose: To define and compare cardiovascular (CV) health scores (CHS) from adolescence (17 yrs) to emerging adulthood (24 yrs) using longitudinal data from a large British birth cohort. Methods: 3142 participants from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) study attended clinical...

Background: Cerebral microvascular dysfunction may contribute to depression via disruption of brain structures involved in mood regulation, but evidence is scarce. The retina allows for direct visualisation of a microvascular bed that shares anatomical and physiological similarities with the cerebral...

Objectives: To investigate the role of peripheral augmentation index (AIx) for the prediction of prevalent cardiovascular disease (CVD) and total mortality in the general population in age- and sex- specific manner. Methods: AIx was measured in 11,250 participants of the population-based Gutenberg Health...

Age-related increases in aortic stiffness, assessed by pulse wave velocity (PWV), predict cardiovascular (CV)-related mortality, but the upstream drivers are incompletely understood. Purpose: To determine if higher circulating levels of the gut microbiome-derived metabolite trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO)...

Background: Both blood pressure variability (BPV) and arterial stiffness (AS) are significantly influenced by age and sex. However, whether the association between BPV and AS differs with age and sex remains unclear. We examined age and sex differences in the association between brachial and central...

Background: The changes experienced by the arterial system due to ageing are still incompletely understood. The aim of this study is to analyze the 10-year longitudinal evolution of input impedance parameters and wave reflection indices in a middle-aged population, and how these effective changes compare...

Background: Large artery stiffness is an index of vascular ageing associated with cardiovascular mortality. While traditional risk factors for arterial stiffness are known, the contribution of socioeconomic factors are less reported. We sought to determine the relationship between arterial stiffness...

A new wearable sensor using millimetre-wave radar and electromagnetic technology provides 64 signals reflected from one radar sinusoidal signal beamed around the radial artery. It is non-invasive, can be non-contact, and is potentially simpler in acquiring the radial pulse then tonometry. This study...

Purpose: Ultrasonographic measurement of flow mediated dilatation (FMD) of brachial artery is the gold standard non-invasive technique to measure endothelial function. However, measurement of FMD is technically cumbersome, operator dependent and requires trained manpower, all of which limits its clinical...

Background: Aging and hypertension often co-occur, which complicates distinguishing their biomechanical effects on arteries clinically. While aortic elastin (half-life ~70 years) is reduced in human aging, in mouse aging (lifespan ~2 years) it remains mostly intact. Knock-out of elastin-associated glycoprotein...

Purpose: Investigating the biomechanical role of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in arteries requires knowledge of their structural distributions. Compared to histology, 3D microscopy offers non-destructive ex vivo imaging under realistic conditions [1]. Robust 3D segmentation of SMCs, however, is challenging....

Exosomes are key regulators of cell-to-cell communication, becoming valuable tool as disease biomarker and in the development of new therapeutic strategies. We aimed to determine the role of endothelial progenitor cell (EPC)-derived exosomes (EXO) in vascular remodelling induced by flow. C57BL/6 mice...

Background: Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is usually asymptomatic and has an extremely high mortality if rupture occurs. Therefore, early detection and intervention are important. However, AAA is most often detected as an accidental finding during clinical imaging for other purposes [1]. Considering...

Background: The lack of acceptance in clinical routine represents a major obstacle for carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) measurements. We thought to include PWV measurements into the 12-channel ECG, which is performed routinely. Methods: Using the conventional electrode position for the 12...

Objective and Motivation: Pulse wave velocity (PWV) is known to be associated with vascular ageing, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) [1]. The European gold standard measurement of PWV requires an experienced operator to measure pulse waveforms at multiple sites, sometimes together with...

Background: Although generally assumed to be an adaptive response to increased blood pressure (BP), arterial stiffness is now recognized as an independent predictor of cardiovascular (CV) events [1]. Moreover it precedes hypertension in at least two mouse models [2,3]. Therefore, the present study aims...

Background: Regional arterial compliance in peripheral arteries is known to be associated with ‘recruitable’ endothelial function probably mediated by an increase in smooth muscle tone [1]. However, the association between regional arterial stiffness and ‘resting’ endothelial function has not been evaluated. Methods:...

This review deals with the effect of several components of the broad term “lifestyle” on arterial stiffness and wave reflections. Caffeine and coffee have an unfavourable effect on aortic stiffness and wave reflections both on an acute and on a chronic basis. Acute consumption of tea, which contains...

Background: Arterial stiffness is a strong predictor of cardiovascular diseases and all-cause mortality [1]. Increased fasting plasma concentrations of highly reactive dicarbonyl compounds – methylglyoxal (MGO), 3-deoxyglucosone (3-DG), and/or glyoxal (GO) – may cause arterial stiffening via for mation...

Purpose: There is a need for new tools to screen large populations for cardiovascular disease risk. The CARDIS consortium (European Union H2020 funding) developed an easy-to-use, non-contact device for measuring carotid to femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV). It consists in a laser doppler vibrometer...

Background: Transforming peripheral noninvasive measurements to obtain central hemodynamic quantities, such as cardiac output (CO) and central systolic blood pressure (cSBP), is a highly emerging field [1,2]. However, no holistic investigation has been performed to assess the amount of information contained...

Background/Objectives: The baroreflex is a crucial mechanism acutely modulating vascular tone and heart rate response to maintain blood pressure (BP) in an optimal range. A decrease in baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) is associated with ageing, and pathological conditions such as hypertension and diabetes....

Background: Arterial stiffness index (β) is a clinically accepted vascular metric, calculated from arterial pressure and diameter obtained simultaneously from a single arterial site [1]. Hence, accurate measurement of β can only be performed on arteries where pressure can be recorded along with the diameter....

Objective: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) primary prevention guidelines recommend absolute CVD risk estimation to guide blood pressure and lipid therapy recommendations but are inconsistent despite relying on similar evidence. This study aimed to compare the populations recommended for treatment according...

Background: Bicuspid aortic valve patients (BAV) are associated with increased risk of ascending aortic aneurysms. However, is unclear whether matrix degradation varies in different ascending aneurysm aetiologies. Aim: To determine whether the micromechanical and biochemical properties elastin microstructure...

Background: Wave reflections play a major role in changing the shape of the pressure waveform. Reflections measured at the aortic root (AR) are thought to be due to the tapering of the aorta [1] and multiple reflection sites, however, there is no consensus on the source of those reflected waves. This...

Objective and Motivation: Endothelial dysfunction is thought to underpin atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. However, the widely used flow mediated dilation (FMD) in-vivotest of endothelial function relates poorly to clinical outcomes. In this study, we investigated potential confounding factors...

Background: Although arterial stiffness has demonstrated moderate heritability, our knowledge of the genes modulating arterial stiffness is still limited. We conducted genome-wide association studies (GWASs) of aortic distensibility (AoD) in both ascending (AA) and proximal descending aorta (PDA) to...

Background: Low-flow mediated constriction (LFMC) has emerged as a non-invasive tool for assessment of endothelial dysfunction [1]. There is insufficient data on association between change in artery diameter during occlusion with its possible stimulus; ‘low flow’ state. This study aims to evaluate the...

Background: Pulse wave velocity (PWV) is an established marker of arterial stiffness [1]. Local PWV estimates, however, are affected by confluence of incident and reflected waves, biasing the spatiotemporal propagation of the systolic foot (SF) in the distension waveform [2,3]. We, therefore, propose...

Background: Assessment of endothelial function using brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD) predicts future cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. However, poor adherence to protocol guidelines and lack of reference values hinders widespread FMD use. This study established age- and sex-specific reference...

Background: Central aortic pressure (CAP) is important for the determination of the cardiovascular risk. Transfer function (TF)-based techniques allow for estimating CAP non-invasively from pressure waveforms acquired distally in the circulation. However, TF-based CAP might preserve the high frequencies...

Background: Cerebral microvascular alterations and hypoperfusion have been associated to cognitive disorder and dementia. We hypothesized that there is a direct link between retinal arteriolar remodelling, as assessed non-invasively using adaptive optics, and cognitive cerebral impairment in hypertensive...

Background: The time at which reflected waves arrive at central arteries has an important influence on ventricular afterload. Current methods of estimating reflection time (RT), including zero-crossover [1], inflection-point [2], and foot methods [3], use only a single point on the pressure waveforms,...

Background: We have previously shown that 3D echocardiography-derived (3DE) indices of left ventricular (LV) structure predict all-cause mortality differently in men and women [1]. However, the mechanism behind these sex differences remains unknown. We therefore examined the role of macro- and micro-vascular...

Background: Hemodynamic monitoring is an integral part of a cardiac catheterization procedure; however it is prone to many distortions, including damping and resonance [1]. Objectives: We sought to compare damping ratio, ascending aortic pressure waveform and invasive blood pressure between Manifold...

Introduction: Microgravity in space is known to cause major alterations in the cardiovascular system. Left ventricular ejection time (LVET) can be measured by the time from the onset point of the pressure wave to the incisura of the dicrotic notch. The aim of this study was to simulate microgravity by...

Objective: Exaggerated exercise blood pressure (BP) is associated with cardiovascular risk factors in adolescence. Aerobic fitness and adiposity (fat mass or ‘fatness’) are important independent contributors to cardiovascular risk in adolescence, but their interrelated associations with exercise BP are...

Background: Dysfunctional cellular mechanosensing appears central to aneurysm formation [1]. We aimed to derive material parameters of aneurysm tissue from in vivo deformations, which may increase insight into the underlying structural integrity of the pathological tissue. Methods: Videos of tracking...

Background: Exaggerated exercise systolic blood pressure (SBP) is a modifiable risk factor associated with vascular dysfunction. Vascular dysfunction may contribute to the development of late-life depression, but the association between exercise SBP and incident depressive symptoms is unknown. Therefore,...