Comparison of the Risk Factors for Arterial Stiffness between Extremity Muscular and Abdominal Elastic Arteries

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: Muscular artery differs from elastic artery in physical properties and constituents of the arterial wall. To investigate the difference between muscular and elastic arteries, we measured the pulse wave velocities (PWVs) in lower extremity muscular arteries (femoral ankle PWV, faPWV) and abdominal elastic arteries (brachial femoral PWV, bfPWV), and searched for the relationships between the PWVs of muscular, elastic arteries and the risk factors of arteriosclerosis. METHODS: 184 normal volunteers were enrolled in the study. Among them, the ratios of male/female, smoker/non-smoker, and hypertension/normal were 81/103, 66/118, and 63/121, respectively. Using volume plethysmography, faPWV and bfPWV were measured. The risk factors of arteriosclerosis in this study were age, gender, smoking, hypertension, body mass index, low density lipoprotein, high density lipoprotein, triglyceride, hemoglobin A1C, and white blood cell. RESULTS: The PWVs of lower extremity muscular arteries (faPWVs) were significantly faster than those of abdominal elastic arteries (bfPWVs) (right, P<0.001; left, P<0.001) Multiple regression analysis revealed that the independent risk factors of the PWV were age (right, P<0.001; left, P<0.001) and gender (right, P=0.008; left, p=0.014) in abdominal elastic arteries. However, in lower extremity muscular arteries, hypertension (right, P<0.001; left, P<0.001) as well as age (right, P<0.001; left, P<0.001) and gender (right, P=0.009; left, P=0.001) were other significant independent risk factors. CONCLUSION: The PWVs of lower extremity muscular arteries were significantly faster than those of abdominal elastic arteries. The significance of hypertension in faPWV suggests that hypertension is an important risk factor in inducing arterial stiffness, especially in lower extremity muscular arteries.