Acute Alterations To Arterial Stiffness In Young Adults With SARS-CoV-2

Abstract

INTRODUCTION: Contracting SARS-CoV-2 has been implicated in systemic vascular alterations. While our group has recently observed decrements to vascular function among young adults who have recently contracted SARS-CoV-2, much less is known regarding the impact of SARS-CoV-2 to the vascular architecture. PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine if SARS-CoV-2 alters carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWVcf), pulse wave analysis (PWA), and carotid stiffness following a positive test result. Using a cross-sectional study design, we hypothesized that PWVcf, PWA, and carotid stiffness would be higher among individuals who recently contracted SARS-CoV-2 compared to healthy controls. METHODS: We tested 14 young adults (8F/6M, 21 ± 1y, 24 ± 3 kg·m-1) 3-4 weeks following a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result compared to young healthy adults who had not tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Doppler ultrasound was used to determine carotid stiffness, distensibility, compliance, and carotid-femoral PWV (PWVcf); Sphygmocor was utilized for assessing aortic AIx, aortic augmentation (AP), and aortic AIx standardized at 75 bpm ([email protected]). RESULTS: Differences were observed between groups in PWVcf (Control: 5.02 ± 0.49m·s-1; SARS-CoV-2: 5.77 ± 0.99m·s-1), carotid stiffness (Control: 4.96 ± 0.71 m/s; SARS-CoV-2: 5.88 ± 0.93 m/s), Young’s Modulus (Control: 396 ± 120 kPa; SARS-CoV-2: 576 ± 224 kPa), and [email protected] (Control: -2.8 ± 15.5%; SARS-CoV-2: 9.5 ± 6.9%) (p < 0.05). However, carotid distension (Control: 0.58 ± 0.16 mm; SARS-CoV-2: 0.62 ± .18 mm) was not different between groups (p > 0.05). CONCLUSION: These data suggest decrements to vascular architecture as indicated by increased measures for arterial stiffness and augmentation index in young adults following contraction of SARS-CoV-2. These vascular alterations may have implications for cardiovascular disease risk among those recovering from SARS-CoV-2. Support or Funding Information: Funding was provided by the Appalachian State University Office of Research (COVID-19 Research Clusters Program Award).