A Non-Invasive Arterial Stiffness Assessment Instrument for Homecare

In this paper, we discuss the development of an easy-to-use non-intrusive arterial stiffness assessment instrument PWV-DVPE (pulse wave velocity by digital volume pulse easy). The instrument records the digital volume pulses simultaneously from both the finger and the ear. The time delay difference between the two digital volume pulses is measured. The PWV is calculated by dividing the difference of the distances between the finger and the ear by the time delay difference. We study 34 subjects (20 men and 14 women, 20 to 44 years of age) and show the good performance of PWV-DVPE for monitoring arterial stiffness. At home, only a few minutes is needed for conducting a self arterial stiffness assessment. Therefore, early self-monitoring of cardiovascular dysfunction and arterial stiffness can be easily and effectively achieved.