Rigidez arterial y riesgo cardiovascular

Abstract

Cardiovascular (CV) disease, the principal cause of morbidity and mortality in the developed world, is the result of the continuous and progressive process of arteriosclerosis that begins with vascular damage. Until recently, as a consequence of the easiness of peripheral blood pressure measurements and of its correlation with the development of CV events, the importance of using methods that have directly evaluated the vessels has been overlooked. However, recently, many non-invasive methods have been introduced for the study of arterial damage. Among these, the analysis of arterial stiffness (AS) that would be a good early marker of arterial disease with recognized predictive and prognostic value in the literature. The pulse wave velocity (PWV) value of the aortic axis measured with a tonometer is the only method to measure AS supported by the 2007 guidelines for the management of Arterial Hypertension of the European Societies of Arterial Hypertension and Cardiology. It is an important prognostic marker of risk and a good tool for the early detection of disease, which allows for better characterization of true CV damage and a more appropriate and rapid intervention on the affected individuals. It remains to be determined if the added information provided through the measurement of AS justifies its more extensive use in the usual clinical practice and the real effect of the drugs on these parameters as well as their meaning in the future occurrence of CV episodes.