What does the pulse wave represent?
Pulse Wave Velocity (PWV) is a measure of arterial stiffness, or the rate at which pressure waves move down the vessel. As blood flows through the vessels of the circulatory system, it moves out of the left ventricle and into the aorta where it is then pushed through the rest of the circulatory system.
What does a high pulse wave mean?
Elevated Aortic Pulse Wave Velocity, a Marker of Arterial Stiffness, Predicts Cardiovascular Events in Well-Functioning Older Adults | Circulation.
How does pulse wave analysis work?
Pulse pressure wave analysis allows calculation of the speed of the pulse (PWV) and ‘augmentation’ of the pulse pressure in the ascending aorta (AIx), both of these measures are related to vascular stiffness, a key component of atherosclerosis.
What is a pulse wave in physiology?
The pulse wave (PW) is a complex physiological phenomenon observed and detected in blood circulation. In the course of heart systole a certain amount of blood is ejected and it is moved into the arteries because of transformation between kinetic and potential energy of each segment of ejected blood.
How is pulse wave velocity measured in arteries?
PWV is most commonly measured as the time it takes a pulse wave to travel from the carotid to the femoral arteries divided by the distance multiplied by 0.8, and is consequently a marker of aortic stiffness.
What is an example of a pulse wave?
Thunder and explosions are examples of pulse waves. A pulse has a velocity, amplitude, and wavelength.
What does pulse wave amplitude measure?
The ratio of pulse wave amplitude (PWA) during reactive hyperemia compared to baseline as measured by peripheral arterial tonometry is as a non-invasive measure of microvascular endothelial function referred to as the pulse wave amplitude reactive hyperemia index (PWA-RHI).
What does pulse wave velocity measure?
Pulse-wave velocity (PWV) is a measurement of arterial stiffness that is an independent predictor of cardiovascular risk. It can be measured simply and noninvasively by measuring the carotid and femoral pulse pressures and the time delay between the two or by other methods relying on pulse-wave analysis.
What’s the difference between a pulse and a wave?
A wave is a disturbance that causes transfer of energy through space while a pulse is as a result of a single vibration sent through a medium. A pulse is actually a disturbance made up of a very large number of waves of different frequencies.
Is pulse wave analysis accurate?
The cardiac output calculated by pulse wave factors is accurate even when heart rate, blood pressure, and total peripheral resistance change. To reduce the effects of other factors, pulse wave factors had been tested among different groups.
What is pulse wave velocity used for?
What factors affect pulse wave velocity?
Pulse wave velocity (PWV) is one of the most widely used surrogates of arterial stiffness [1]. Previous studies demonstrated that PWV is associated with various factors such as age, gender, salt intake, genetic factors, blood pressure (BP), and heart rate (HR) [2, 3].
What can you do with pulse wave velocity analysis?
We can observe the changes in pressure, blood flow, velocity and profile throughout the whole pulse wave. It can be used for classification of the artery elasticity. Pulse wave velocity analysis is a classic index of aortic stiffness and is a predictor of cardiovascular mortality in hypertensive cases.
Why is aortic pulse wave velocity so important?
Since aortic pulse wave velocity is dominantly influenced by age, this finding may be of major importance for the evaluation of cardiovascular risk in the elderly. Aortic PWV nowadays is considered as a marker of CV risk independently of blood pressure level, but in conjunction with heart rate.
Where does the pulse wave take place in the heart?
The pulse wave is a physiological phenomenon, observable and measurable in the arterial system during blood circulation. During one heart systole a certain blood volume is expelled.
Why does age and systolic pressure increase PWV?
Age and systolic pressure strongly correlate with PWV. In fact, the most important factor contributing to increase in PWV is age because of increased arterial stiffness caused by medial calcification and loss of elasticity.