Novel temperature based technique for measurement of endothelial dysfunction

The endothelial cells, which form the inner lining of the arteries, respond to changes in pressure by producing nitric oxide (NO) which in turn causes vasodilation. The normal functioning of the endothelium is hampered in certain cardiovascular diseases. Various methods have been developed to non-invasively determine the endothelial dysfunction (EDF). We propose to measure the EDF by causing reactive hyperemia in the arm and measuring the temperature variations of the hand region. We created reactive hyperemia by occluding the arm by blood pressure cuff at about 200 mmHg for 5 minutes, and then suddenly released the pressure. Using a computer-based data acquisition system, the temperature variations of the distal palmer pad/middle finger, during the entire procedure were continuously monitored. Initial studies have indicated that there is significant increase in the rate of rise as compared to rate off all of temperature (mean increase = 117%, standard deviation = 50%). Our goal is to non-invasively predict EDF from the temperature technique.