title: Arterial compliance in patients on long-treatment-time dialysis.
abstract: Arterial compliance is found to be reduced in haemodialysis patients. It is not clear whether decreased arterial compliance in uraemic patients is a consequence of long-standing increased mean arterial blood pressure or a consequence of the uraemic state. An adequate blood pressure can be achieved by long-treatment-time dialysis of 8 h three times a week. We studied femoral and carotid artery wall properties in 24 normotensive patients on long-treatment-time dialysis and 24 normal controls matched for mean arterial pressure, age, sex, and body mass index. Arterial distensibility coefficient and compliance coefficient were determined with a vessel wall movement detector system, 24 h after dialysis in the supine position. The patients were 5.9 +/- 6.6 years on long-treatment-time dialysis at a Kt/V of 1.8 +/- 0.4. We found no significant differences in mean arterial pressure or pulse pressure between patients (85 +/- 13, 55 +/- 17 mmHg) and controls (84 +/- 6, 50 +/- 13 mmHg). Femoral distensibility coefficient and compliance coefficient were lower in patients (6.0 +/- 2.4 10(-3)/kPa; P < 0.05, 0.52 +/- 0.28 mm2/kPa; n.s.) compared to the controls (8.8 +/- 4.0 10(-3)/kPa, 0.67 +/- 0.38 mm2/kPa). No differences in carotid distensibility coefficient and compliance coefficient were found between patients (12.8 +/- 4.6 10(-3)/kPa, 0.72 +/- 0.30 mm2/kPa) and controls (14.1 +/- 4.4 10(-3)/kPa, 0.70 +/- 0.23 mm2/kPa). We conclude that patients on long-treatment-time-dialysis have an increased stiffening of the muscular femoral artery but not of the more elastic carotid artery. Results suggest that the uraemic state itself has a deleterious effect on the elastic properties of the muscular femoral artery.
authors.affiliation: University Hospital, Maastricht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Luik
authors.forename: J J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Spek
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Charra
authors.forename: L M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: van Bortel
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Laurent
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Leunissen
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000502:physiology*; D003187:Compliance; D005260:Female; D005263:Femoral Artery / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012016:Reference Values; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D013997:Time Factors; D014655:Vascular Resistance / Q000502:physiology*