A Cuff-Based Approach for Assessing the Flow-Mediated Dilatation of Brachial Arteries

A high-resolution ultrasound technique is needed to accurately assess the endothelium-dependent flow-mediated dilatation (FMDu) of a conduit artery. Thus, the objective of this study was to propose an alternative, cuff-based method for measuring brachial arterial flow-mediated dilatation (FMDc). In 19 subjects, a pneumatic cuff wrapped around the upper arm was inflated up to 150 mmHg and lasted for 30 seconds, 1 and 5 minutes, respectively. We measured the small oscillation amplitude in the cuff pressure before and after the three different occlusion periods, when the internal pressure of the cuff was maintained at 30 or 40 mmHg. In the 5-minute occlusion condition, FMDc and FMDu were found to be 88.5±26.8% and 8.7+5.3%, respectively. In conclusion, the proposed method may be used to estimate endothelium-dependent flow-mediated dilatation of a conduit artery, due to its higher sensitivity to the change in the arterial diameter than the traditional high-frequency ultrasound imaging technique.