Abstract
BackgroundPulse wave velocity is an important measure of cardiovascular risk, and can be measured by several different techniques. We compared age-related changes in pulse wave velocity derived from carotid and femoral artery waveforms using the Vicorder device and descending thoracic aorta time velocity curves using phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a group of normal healthy volunteers, without cardiovascular disease, aged between 20 and 79 years.MethodsEighty subjects underwent same-day measurements of Vicorder and MRI pulse wave velocity measurements.ResultsBoth Vicorder and MRI-based pulse wave velocity measurements were significantly increased with age (R = 0.59 and 0.57 respectively, both P < 0.0001). Vicorder and MRI pulse wave velocities were also significantly related to each other (R = 0.27, P < 0.05), and Bland Altman plots showed that on average Vicorder measurements were 1.6 m/s greater than MRI. In 5 % of cases, agreement between the values of the two techniques were above and below 2 standard deviations, and these were at higher levels of pulse wave velocities. Multiple linear stepwise regression analysis confirmed highly significant relationships of both techniques to age (both P < 0.0001), and MRI was also significantly related to heart rate (P = 0.006) but Vicorder was not.ConclusionsBoth Vicorder and MRI perform similarly in detecting age-related changes in pulse wave velocity. Thus, the choice of using one or the other will depend on other aspects of the investigation, such as the need for portability favouring Vicorder, or need for additional cardiovascular imaging favouring MRI.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.Gov identifier NCT01504828
Highlights
Pulse wave velocity is an important measure of cardiovascular risk, and can be measured by several different techniques
Arterial stiffness is an important determinant of cardiovascular risk, and measurement of pulse wave velocity is the most accepted measure of arterial stiffness [1,2,3]
Nine patients were excluded from this study because the Vicorder data was not adequate, usually because the carotid waveform was unclear
Summary
Pulse wave velocity is an important measure of cardiovascular risk, and can be measured by several different techniques. We compared age-related changes in pulse wave velocity derived from carotid and femoral artery waveforms using the Vicorder device and descending thoracic aorta time velocity curves using phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a group of normal healthy volunteers, without cardiovascular disease, aged between 20 and 79 years. The Vicorder device (Skidmore Medical, UK) is an inflatable cuff-based device that simultaneously measures the upstroke of carotid and femoral pulsations to calculate pulse wave velocity It has shown good reproducibility [10] even when used by subjects with limited experience in using the device [11], and compares well with invasive measures of central blood pressure [12], and with measures of pulse wave velocity from the SphygmoCor device [10]. The purpose of this study was to compare measurements of pulse wave velocity using MRI and the Vicorder device in a population of normal subjects, without cardiovascular disease, but a wide range of ages
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