An ultrasound-based method for determining pulse wave velocity in superficial arteries.
In this paper, we present a method for estimating local pulse wave velocity (PWV) solely from ultrasound measurements: the area-flow (QA) method. With the QA method, PWV is estimated as the ratio between change in flow and change in cross-sectional area (PWV = dQ/dA) during the reflection-free period of the cardiac cycle. In four anaesthetized dogs and 21 human subjects (age 23-74) we measured the carotid flow and cross-sectional area non-invasively by ultrasound. As a reference method we used the Bramwell-Hill (BH) equation which estimates PWV from pulse pressure and cross-sectional area. Additionally, we therefore measured brachial pulse pressure by oscillometry in the human subjects, and central aortic pulse pressure by micro-manometry in the dogs. As predicted by the pressure dependency of arterial stiffness, the estimated PWV decreased when the aortic pressure was lowered in two of the dogs. For the human subjects, the QA and BH estimates were correlated (R=0.43, p<0.05) and agreed on average (mean difference of -0.14 m/s). The PWV by the BH method increased with age (p<0.01) whereas the PWV by the QA method tended to increase with age (p<0.1). This corresponded to a larger residual variance (residual = deviation of the estimated PWV from the regression line) for the QA method than for the BH method, indicating different precisions for the two methods. This study illustrates that the simple equation PWV = dQ/dA gives estimates correlated to the PWV of the reference method. However, improvements in the basic measurements seem necessary to increase the precision of the method.
Rabben
Stein Inge
SI
Institute for Surgical Research and Department of Cardiology, Rikshospitalet University Hospital, UiO, Oslo 0027, Norway. stein.i.rabben@ieee.org
Stergiopulos
Nikos
N
Hellevik
Leif Rune
LR
Smiseth
Otto A
OA
Slørdahl
Stig
S
Urheim
Stig
S
Angelsen
Bjørn
B
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D001794:Blood Pressure; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000502:physiology; D004285:Dogs; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D011673:Pulsatile Flow / Q000502:physiology; D011674:Pulse; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D018617:Ultrasonography, Doppler, Pulsed / Q000379:methods*