title: Characteristics of brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity in Japanese children.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Measurement of pulse wave velocity (PWV) is a useful approach for evaluating the severity of atherosclerosis in adults, and, in particular, the measurement of brachial-ankle PWV (baPWV) has been commonly reported as a simple and practicable method. We attempted to investigate how baPWV in healthy children changes with age and gender, in order to assess baPWV in children with risk factors for the early progression of systemic atherosclerosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  We measured baPWV in 970 healthy Japanese children (500 boys and 470 girls), and set up the normal baPWV values of children on the basis of age and gender. We also performed linear regression analysis and step-wise multiple regression analysis for evaluating its correlation with baPWV and independent variables for baPWV in children.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The values of baPWV in children were higher in boys than in girls, and baPWV increased with age in both genders. Age, blood pressure and heart rate (HR) were significant determinants of baPWV in both male and female subjects, while the obesity index had no correlation with baPWV.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  On the basis of these results, we suggest that baPWV in children is largely influenced by age and gender, and that baPWV gradually increased with age in both genders.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Cardiology and Nephrology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine Graduate School of Medical Science, Kawaramachi-Hirokoji, Kyoto 602-8566, Japan.
authors.forename: Ayumi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Niboshi
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hamaoka
authors.forename: Koichi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sakata
authors.forename: Fumio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Inoue
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D017677:Age Distribution; D000842:Ankle / Q000098:blood supply*; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D001794:Blood Pressure; D015992:Body Mass Index; D001916:Brachial Artery / Q000502:physiology; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006339:Heart Rate; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D011673:Pulsatile Flow; D012016:Reference Values; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012107:Research Design; D017678:Sex Distribution