title: Feasibility of aortic pulse pressure and pressure wave velocity MRI measurement in young adults.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the feasibility of assessing, noninvasively, aortic pulse pressure (APP) and pulse wave velocity (PWV) in the ascending aorta of young adults by means of velocity-encoded magnetic resonance (MR) imaging.
  
  
  METHODS
  In a series of 11 healthy volunteers, velocity-encoded MR imaging provided pairs of magnitude and phase-contrast images. Blood flow velocity and aortic cross-sectional area (CSA) were determined with a 30-msec temporal resolution. A model analysis revealed that variation in aortic CSA and in maximal blood flow velocity throughout systole could be used to estimate APP and, hence, to derive PWV by means of two different methods.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Mean +/- SD values of the APP for the series were 54.2 +/- 16.4 mmHg (range 32.2-84.1 mmHg). The ascending aortic PWV mean +/- SD values were 5.03 +/- 1.10 m/second and 5.37 +/- 1.23 m/second according to the two methods, and both estimates were not significantly different (95% confidence level).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results are in agreement with previously published data, suggesting that APP and PWV can be determined, noninvasively, in young adults using MRI.
authors.affiliation: Service de Médecine Nucléaire, Hôpital du Haut-Lévêque, Pessac, France. elaffon@u-bordeaux2.fr
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Laffon
authors.forename: Roger
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Marthan
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Montaudon
authors.forename: Valérie
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Latrabe
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Laurent
authors.forename: Dominique
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ducassou
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology*; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination / Q000379:methods*; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D011673:Pulsatile Flow / Q000502:physiology; D011674:Pulse