Clinical applications of arterial stiffness; definitions and reference values
Top Cited Papers
Open Access
- 1 May 2002
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in American Journal of Hypertension
- Vol. 15 (5), 426-444
- https://doi.org/10.1016/s0895-7061(01)02319-6
Abstract
Arterial stiffening is the most important cause of increasing systolic and pulse pressure, and for decreasing diastolic pressure beyond 40 years of age. Stiffening affects predominantly the aorta and proximal elastic arteries, and to a lesser degree the peripheral muscular arteries. While conceptually a Windkessel model is the simplest way to visualize the cushioning function of arteries, this is not useful clinically under changing conditions when effects of wave reflection become prominent. Many measures have been applied to quantify stiffness, but all are approximations only, on account of the nonhomogeneous structure of the arterial wall, its variability in different locations, at different levels of distending pressure, and with changes in smooth muscle tone. This article summarizes the methods and indices used to estimate arterial stiffness, and provides values from a survey of the literature, followed by recommendations of an international group of workers in the field who attended the First Consensus Conference on Arterial Stiffness, which was held in Paris during 2000, under the chairmanship of M.E. Safar and E.D. Frohlich.Keywords
This publication has 76 references indexed in Scilit:
- Age-Related Abnormalities in Arterial Compliance Identified by Pressure Pulse Contour AnalysisHypertension, 1999
- Aortic Pulse Wave Velocity as a Marker of Cardiovascular Risk in Hypertensive PatientsHypertension, 1999
- Mechanical Principles in Arterial DiseaseHypertension, 1995
- Arterial Hemodynamics in Human HypertensionHypertension, 1995
- Isobaric compliance of the radial artery is increased in patients with essential hypertensionJournal of Hypertension, 1993
- Increased stiffness and persistent narrowing of the aorta after successful repair of coarctation of the aorta: Relationship to left ventricular mass and blood pressure at rest and with exerciseAmerican Heart Journal, 1992
- Evaluation of aortic distensibility with transesophageal echocardiographyAmerican Heart Journal, 1992
- Regional wave travel and reflections along the human aorta: a study with six simultaneous micromanometric pressures.Circulation, 1985
- Effects of aging on arterial distensibility in populations with high and low prevalence of hypertension: comparison between urban and rural communities in China.Circulation, 1985
- Aortic input impedance in normal man: relationship to pressure wave forms.Circulation, 1980