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(Circulation. 2006;113:657-663.)
© 2006 American Heart Association, Inc.
Epidemiology |
From the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics (F.U.S.M.-R., T.J.M.v.d.C., A.H., N.M.v.P., M.L.B., M.M.B.B., J.C.M.W.), Section of Geriatric Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine (F.U.S.M.-R., T.J.M.v.d.C.), and Department of Internal Medicine (M.A.D.H.S.), Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Cardiovascular Institute, Paris, France (R.A.); and Departments of Physiology (R.S.R.) and Biophysics (A.P.G.H.), Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands.
Correspondence to Dr J.C.M. Witteman, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Erasmus Medical Center, PO Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands. E-mail j.witteman{at}erasmusmc.nl
Received April 12, 2005; revision received October 27, 2005; accepted October 31, 2005.
| Abstract |
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Methods and Results The present study included 2835 subjects participating in the third examination phase of the Rotterdam Study. Arterial stiffness was measured as aortic pulse wave velocity and carotid distensibility. Cox proportional hazards regression analysis was performed to compute hazard ratios. During follow-up, 101 subjects developed coronary heart disease (mean follow-up period, 4.1 years), and 63 subjects developed a stroke (mean follow-up period, 3.2 years). The risk of cardiovascular disease increased with increasing aortic pulse wave velocity index. Hazard ratios and corresponding 95% CIs of coronary heart disease for subjects in the second and third tertiles of the aortic pulse wave velocity index compared with subjects in the reference category were 1.72 (0.91 to 3.24) and 2.45 (1.29 to 4.66), respectively, after adjustment for age, gender, mean arterial pressure, and heart rate. Corresponding estimates for stroke were 1.22 (0.55 to 2.70) and 2.28 (1.05 to 4.96). Estimates decreased only slightly after adjustment for cardiovascular risk factors, carotid intima-media thickness, the ankle-arm index, and pulse pressure. The aortic pulse wave velocity index provided additional predictive value above cardiovascular risk factors, measures of atherosclerosis, and pulse pressure. Carotid distensibility as measured in this study was not independently associated with cardiovascular disease.
Conclusions Aortic pulse wave velocity is an independent predictor of coronary heart disease and stroke in apparently healthy subjects.
Key Words: aging arterial stiffness coronary heart disease epidemiology
| Introduction |
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Editorial p 601 Clinical Perspective p 663
| Methods |
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55 years and living in Ommoord, a suburb of Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The rationale and design of the Rotterdam Study have been described elsewhere.11 The overall aim of the study is to investigate the incidence and determinants of chronic disabling diseases. Baseline data were collected during 19901993. The third examination phase took place during 19971999. During this phase, measurements of cardiovascular risk factors, atherosclerosis, and arterial stiffness were conducted. Subjects in nursing homes did not visit the research center and were not invited for these measurements. The Medical Ethics Committee of Erasmus Medical Center approved the study, and written consent was obtained from all participants.
Measures of Arterial Stiffness
PWV Index
Carotid-femoral PWV index, a measure of aortic stiffness, was calculated with the subjects in supine position. PWV index was assessed with an automatic device (Complior Artech Medicla)12 that measures the time delay between the rapid upstroke of the feet of simultaneously recorded pulse waves in the carotid and the femoral arteries. The distance between the recording sites in the carotid and the femoral arteries (the carotid artery and the groin) was measured with a tape over the surface of the body. PWV index was calculated as the ratio between the distance and the foot-to-foot time delay and was expressed in meters per second.
Carotid Distensibility
Common carotid distensibility was assessed with the subjects in supine position, with the head tilted slightly to the contralateral side for the measurement in the common carotid artery. The vessel wall motion of the right common carotid artery was measured by means of a duplex scanner (ATL Ultramark IV, operating frequency 7.5 MHz) connected to a vessel wall movement detector system. The details of this technique have been described elsewhere.13 After 5 minutes of rest, a region at 1.5 cm proximal to the origin of the bulb of the carotid artery was identified with the use of B-mode ultrasound. The displacement of the arterial walls was obtained by processing the radiofrequency signals originating from 2 selected sample volumes positioned over the anterior and posterior walls. The end-diastolic diameter (D), the absolute stroke change in diameter during systole (
D), and the relative stroke change in diameter (
D/D) were computed as the mean of 4 cardiac cycles of 3 successive recordings. The cross-sectional arterial wall distensibility coefficient was calculated according to the following equation: distensibility coefficient=2
D/(Dxpulse pressure) (103/kPa).14 In a reproducibility study performed among 47 subjects, the intraclass correlation coefficient was 0.80 for both the PWV index and the carotid distensibility coefficient.
Cardiovascular Risk Factors
Information on cardiovascular risk factors was collected during the third follow-up examination. Data on drug use and smoking habits were obtained during the home interview. Smoking was classified as never, former, or current smoking. Systolic (first Korotkoff phase) and diastolic (fifth Korotkoff phase) blood pressures were measured twice on the right arm with a random-zero sphygmomanometer, after the participant had been seated for at least 5 minutes. The mean of the 2 blood pressure values was used in the analyses. Pulse pressure was defined as the difference between systolic and diastolic blood pressure. Mean arterial pressure was calculated as diastolic blood pressure plus one third pulse pressure. Body mass index (weight [kg]/height2 [m]) was calculated. Serum total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol values were determined by an automated enzymatic procedure (Boehringer Mannheim System). Diabetes mellitus was defined as the use of blood glucoselowering medication and/or a fasting serum glucose level
7.0 mmol/L.15 History of myocardial infarction and stroke was defined as described previously.16,17
Measurement of Atherosclerosis
Ultrasonography of both carotid arteries was performed with a 7.5-MHz linear-array transducer and a duplex scanner (ATL UltraMark IV). Common carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) was determined as previously described.18 The maximum common carotid IMT was determined as the average of the maximum IMT of near wall and far wall measurements over a length of 1 cm, and the average of left and right maximum common carotid IMT was computed. The ankle-arm index (AAI) is the ratio of the systolic blood pressure at the ankle to the systolic blood pressure at the arm. According to the protocol of the Rotterdam Study, the AAI was measured at both legs.19 For the present analyses, we used the lowest measure obtained. Subjects with an unmeasurable ankle pressure, which was considered to be due to atherosclerosis, were assigned an AAI of 0.
Incident Cardiovascular Events and All-Cause Mortality
Subjects participating in the Rotterdam Study are monitored continuously for the occurrence of cardiovascular events through automated linkage with the files from general practitioners in the study district. When a cardiovascular event was reported, the research assistants collected additional information from medical records of the general practitioner and, in addition, obtained information from the hospital discharge records or nursing home records including letters from medical specialists. For the diagnosis of cardiac events, 2 research physicians independently coded all reported events. In case of disagreement, a decision was made by a medical expert in the field. In case of stroke, events were coded by 2 research physicians and an experienced neurologist. Codes were assigned according to the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision (ICD-10).20 Coronary heart disease was defined as the occurrence of a fatal or nonfatal myocardial infarction (ICD-10 code I21), a percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty, a coronary artery bypass graft, other forms of acute (I24) or chronic ischemic heart disease (I25), sudden cardiac death (I46 and R96), and death due to ventricular fibrillation (I49) and congestive heart failure (I50). ICD-10 codes used for coding stroke were I61, I63, and I64. Information on vital status was acquired at regular intervals from the municipal authorities of Rotterdam. Follow-up for coronary heart disease and all-cause mortality was complete until January 1, 2003. Follow-up for stroke was complete until January 1, 2002. Follow-up for all-cause mortality was complete until July 1, 2004. Differences in duration of follow-up periods are due to logistic reasons.
Population for Analysis
A total of 4024 subjects visited the research center during the third phase of the Rotterdam Study. PWV index was measured in 3550 subjects, and the carotid distensibility coefficient was measured in 3098 subjects. Missing information on PWV index and the carotid distensibility coefficient was due almost entirely to logistic reasons. Of the 3550 subjects with a measurement of PWV index, 69 subjects (1.9%) were excluded from the analyses because of poor quality of the PWV index recordings, leaving 3481 subjects. We excluded subjects with previous coronary heart disease and previous stroke, leaving 2835 subjects for PWV index analyses, and, among these, 2265 subjects for analyses of the carotid distensibility coefficient. Data on cardiovascular risk factors, IMT, AAI, and pulse pressure were available for >95% of subjects.
Statistical Analysis
For subjects with missing data on clinical characteristics measured on a continuous scale, we imputed the population mean. For dichotomous variables, missing variable indicators were used. Mean values with SD and percentages were calculated for continuous and noncontinuous baseline variables, respectively. After the proportionality assumption was assessed, Cox proportional hazards regression analysis, adjusted for age and gender, was performed to estimate hazard ratios with corresponding 95% CIs for coronary heart disease, stroke, and all-cause mortality associated with tertiles of PWV index and the carotid distensibility coefficient. Cutoff points for gender-specific tertiles of PWV index were 12.3 and 14.6 m/s for the second and third tertiles in men; corresponding cutoff points in women were 11.9 and 14.2 m/s. Cutoff points for tertiles of the carotid distensibility coefficient were 8.8x103/kPa and 12.7x103/kPa for the second and third tertiles in men; corresponding cutoff points in women were 7.8x103/kPa and 11.3x103/kPa. Reference categories were subjects in the first tertile of PWV index and subjects in the last tertile of the carotid distensibility coefficient. Analyses were additionally adjusted for mean arterial pressure and heart rate and subsequently also for body mass index, total cholesterol, HDL cholesterol, diabetes mellitus, smoking status, use of antihypertensive medication, carotid IMT, AAI, and pulse pressure. In the test for trend analysis, we replaced tertiles of PWV index and distensibility coefficient with their corresponding continuous values. We tested the interaction of stiffness measures with age and gender by entering interaction terms in the Cox regression models. The Kaplan-Meier method was used to estimate survival curves of cardiovascular events associated with tertiles of PWV index. The log-rank test was used to compare the unadjusted survival curves. Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to compute the discriminatory power of different sets of cardiovascular risk indicators. Differences in the discriminatory power between models were estimated by a nonparametric approach to the analysis of areas under the ROC curves by using the theory on generalized U statistics to generate an estimated covariance matrix.21
| Results |
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| Discussion |
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A previous study found that aortic PWV has been found to predict incident cardiovascular disease in well-functioning older adults.10 In this study PWV was relatively strongly associated with incident stroke, but the association with coronary heart disease was weak after adjustment for all potential confounders. In the present study we found a strong and graded association between PWV index and coronary heart disease and stroke, as well as after adjustment for confounders. After multivariable adjustment, risk estimates for stroke were reduced slightly; however, the association lost statistical significance, probably because of the limited number of events. Advantages of the present study are the comprehensive adjustment for measures of atherosclerosis, the examination of the additive predictive value of PWV index beyond pulse pressure, and the inclusion of both PWV index and carotid distensibility.
We found that carotid distensibility was not independently associated with risk of cardiovascular disease and mortality. Although age- and gender-adjusted hazard ratios for the distensibility coefficient were increased, the risk estimates were attenuated after further adjustment for mean arterial pressure and heart rate. To interpret our findings, several methodological aspects of the measures of stiffness need to be discussed. First, using the distance between the carotid and the femoral arteries leads to an overestimation of the real distance traveled by the pulse wave, resulting in higher mean values of aortic PWV. Second, the use of a tape measure over the surface of the body may lead to an overestimation of the distance traveled by the pulse wave, and therefore we adjusted for body mass index. Third, in computing the carotid distensibility coefficient, we used the brachial pulse pressure rather than the carotid pulse pressure. Information on comparisons between carotid and brachial pulse pressures indicates that the difference between these pressures is 8 mm Hg in a presumed healthy population and 2.6 mm Hg in patients with severe coronary artery disease.22 These findings indicate that using brachial artery pulse pressure instead of carotid artery pulse pressure may have led to an underestimation of the distensibility, which is different in subjects with and without cardiovascular disease. This may lead to an underestimation of the association with disease. It has been suggested to derive carotid artery pulse pressure with the use of brachial artery pulse pressure.23 However, to perform this procedure, brachial mean pressure should be measured directly, whereas in our study this was computed from blood pressure components by the Korotkoff sound method. Therefore, we cannot exclude the possibility that other methods for assessing carotid distensibility show an association with cardiovascular disease.
Several mechanisms may explain the association between aortic stiffness and coronary heart disease. Arterial stiffening may lead to early pulse wave reflection causing an increase of central systolic blood pressure, a decrease of diastolic blood pressure, and a consequent increase of pulse pressure.24 The elevation of systolic blood pressure increases myocardial oxygen demand, reduces ejection fraction, and increases ventricular load, thereby inducing left ventricular hypertrophy.2 Moreover, because myocardial blood supply depends largely on pressure throughout diastole and the duration of diastole,3 the contemporary decrease of diastolic blood pressure can compromise coronary perfusion, resulting in subendocardial ischemia.3,25 A raised pulse pressure due to increased vascular stiffness may induce arterial remodeling, increasing wall thickness, and the development of plaques.26 Additionally, stiffer arteries may contribute to rupture and ulceration of atherosclerotic plaques,27 especially when an inhomogeneity in stiffness in and around the plaque is present28; this is likely to result in increased shear stress and subsequent rupture. Finally, it has been shown that pulse pressure, which is a consequence of arterial stiffness, is independently associated with arterial plaque ulceration, supporting the hypothesis that cyclical hemodynamic forces are important determinants of plaque rupture.29 Some of these mechanisms may also explain the association between aortic stiffness and stroke. The association between pulse pressure and the risk of stroke has been described previously.30,31 Furthermore, aortic stiffness may be a proxy for stiffness in other vessels. Arterial stiffness is caused by structural changes, including fibrosis, medial smooth muscle necrosis, breaks in elastin fibers, calcifications, and diffusion of macromolecules into the arterial wall, which have also been described at the site of the cerebral vasculature.32 Finally, thromboembolism subsequent to plaque rupture may increase the risk of stroke.
The predictive value of several cardiovascular risk factors decreases with age because of selective survival and the influence of comorbidity on risk factors levels.33,34 In contrast, vascular stiffness increases steadily with age and can be considered a cumulative measure of previous exposures. Elevated pulse pressure, the pulsatile component of blood pressure, is an expression of arterial stiffness, can be derived easily from blood pressure measurements, and has been associated with incident cardiovascular disease.30,31,35 Nevertheless, adding PWV index to models containing cardiovascular risk factors, measures of atherosclerosis, and pulse pressure improved the predictive value for cardiovascular events, demonstrating its additive value in cardiovascular risk stratification.
Some remaining methodological issues need to be discussed. First, information on measures of stiffness was not available for all subjects who visited the research center. However, missing information was primarily due to logistic reasons, which is likely to be random and thus will not have biased our results. Second, subjects may have started antihypertensive treatment after the baseline examination, which may have affected arterial stiffness and underestimated the risk estimates. Finally, because our study was performed in a population of predominantly elderly white subjects, the generalizability of our data to younger individuals or other ethnicities remains uncertain.
In conclusion, we found that aortic PWV is a strong predictor of coronary heart disease and stroke in a large population-based study. Aortic PWV improved the prediction of cardiovascular disease when added to known risk factors, measures of atherosclerosis, and pulse pressure.
| Acknowledgments |
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Dr Reneman reports having served as a consultant for PIE Medical. The remaining authors report no conflicts of interest.
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D. Nyhan and D. E. Berkowitz Perioperative Blood Pressure Management: Does Central Vascular Stiffness Matter? Anesth. Analg., October 1, 2008; 107(4): 1103 - 1106. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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H. Beaussier, I. Masson, C. Collin, E. Bozec, B. Laloux, D. Calvet, M. Zidi, P. Boutouyrie, and S. Laurent Carotid Plaque, Arterial Stiffness Gradient, and Remodeling in Hypertension Hypertension, October 1, 2008; 52(4): 729 - 736. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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A. G. Ruitenbeek, T. J.M. van der Cammen, A. H. van den Meiracker, and F. U.S. Mattace-Raso Age and Blood Pressure Levels Modify the Functional Properties of Central but Not Peripheral Arteries Angiology, July 1, 2008; 59(3): 290 - 295. [Abstract] [PDF] |
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N. Leone, P. Ducimetiere, J. Gariepy, D. Courbon, C. Tzourio, J.-F. Dartigues, K. Ritchie, A. Alperovitch, P. Amouyel, M. E. Safar, et al. Distension of the Carotid Artery and Risk of Coronary Events: The Three-City Study Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol, July 1, 2008; 28(7): 1392 - 1397. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. E. Safar and J. Blacher Carotid versus brachial pulse pressure in elderly persons. J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., June 24, 2008; 51(25): 2440 - 2441. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M Saito, H Okayama, K Nishimura, A Ogimoto, T Ohtsuka, K Inoue, G Hiasa, T Sumimoto, and J Higaki Possible link between large artery stiffness and coronary flow velocity reserve Heart, June 1, 2008; 94(6): e20 - e20. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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J. Karalliedde, A. Smith, L. DeAngelis, V. Mirenda, A. Kandra, J. Botha, P. Ferber, and G. Viberti Valsartan Improves Arterial Stiffness in Type 2 Diabetes Independently of Blood Pressure Lowering Hypertension, June 1, 2008; 51(6): 1617 - 1623. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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S. S. Najjar, A. Scuteri, V. Shetty, J. G. Wright, D. C. Muller, J. L. Fleg, H. P. Spurgeon, L. Ferrucci, and E. G. Lakatta Pulse Wave Velocity Is an Independent Predictor of the Longitudinal Increase in Systolic Blood Pressure and of Incident Hypertension in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., April 8, 2008; 51(14): 1377 - 1383. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. Delahousse, M. Chaignon, L. Mesnard, P. Boutouyrie, M. E. Safar, T. Lebret, M. Pastural-Thaunat, L. Tricot, A. Kolko-Labadens, A. Karras, et al. Aortic Stiffness of Kidney Transplant Recipients Correlates with Donor Age J. Am. Soc. Nephrol., April 1, 2008; 19(4): 798 - 805. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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G. F. Mitchell, V. Gudnason, L. J. Launer, T. Aspelund, and T. B. Harris Hemodynamics of Increased Pulse Pressure in Older Women in the Community-Based Age, Gene/Environment Susceptibility-Reykjavik Study Hypertension, April 1, 2008; 51(4): 1123 - 1128. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. E. Safar Review: Pulse pressure, arterial stiffness and wave reflections (augmentation index) as cardiovascular risk factors in hypertension Therapeutic Advances in Cardiovascular Disease, February 1, 2008; 2(1): 13 - 24. [Abstract] [PDF] |
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B. Biondi and D. S. Cooper The Clinical Significance of Subclinical Thyroid Dysfunction Endocr. Rev., February 1, 2008; 29(1): 76 - 131. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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P. Ptaszynski, T. Klingenheben, B. Gerritse, and L. Kornet Risk stratification after myocardial infarction: a new method of determining the neural component of the baroreflex is potentially more discriminative in distinguishing patients at high and low risk for arrhythmias Europace, February 1, 2008; 10(2): 227 - 234. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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A. Qasem and A. Avolio Determination of Aortic Pulse Wave Velocity From Waveform Decomposition of the Central Aortic Pressure Pulse Hypertension, February 1, 2008; 51(2): 188 - 195. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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H Senzaki, Y Iwamoto, H Ishido, T Matsunaga, M Taketazu, T Kobayashi, H Asano, T Katogi, and S Kyo Arterial haemodynamics in patients after repair of tetralogy of Fallot: influence on left ventricular after load and aortic dilatation Heart, January 1, 2008; 94(1): 70 - 74. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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S. R. Waldstein, S. C. Rice, J. F. Thayer, S. S. Najjar, A. Scuteri, and A. B. Zonderman Pulse Pressure and Pulse Wave Velocity Are Related to Cognitive Decline in the Baltimore Longitudinal Study of Aging Hypertension, January 1, 2008; 51(1): 99 - 104. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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D. A. McAllister, J. D. Maclay, N. L. Mills, G. Mair, J. Miller, D. Anderson, D. E. Newby, J. T. Murchison, and W. MacNee Arterial Stiffness Is Independently Associated with Emphysema Severity in Patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., December 15, 2007; 176(12): 1208 - 1214. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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A. Simon, G. Chironi, and J. Levenson Comparative performance of subclinical atherosclerosis tests in predicting coronary heart disease in asymptomatic individuals Eur. Heart J., December 2, 2007; 28(24): 2967 - 2971. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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C. T.-J. Gan, J.-W. Lankhaar, N. Westerhof, J. T. Marcus, A. Becker, J. W. R. Twisk, A. Boonstra, P. E. Postmus, and A. Vonk-Noordegraaf Noninvasively Assessed Pulmonary Artery Stiffness Predicts Mortality in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension Chest, December 1, 2007; 132(6): 1906 - 1912. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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S MILLS, J CAIN, N PURANDARE, and A JACKSON Biomarkers of cerebrovascular disease in dementia Br. J. Radiol., December 1, 2007; 80(Special_Issue_2): S128 - S145. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. J. Roman and J. E. Salmon Cardiovascular Manifestations of Rheumatologic Diseases Circulation, November 13, 2007; 116(20): 2346 - 2355. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. F. O'Rourke Arterial aging: pathophysiological principles Vascular Medicine, November 1, 2007; 12(4): 329 - 341. [Abstract] [PDF] |
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N. Cheung, A. R. Sharrett, R. Klein, M. H. Criqui, F.M. A. Islam, K. J. Macura, M. F. Cotch, B. E.K. Klein, and T. Y. Wong Aortic Distensibility and Retinal Arteriolar Narrowing: The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis Hypertension, October 1, 2007; 50(4): 617 - 622. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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E. C. Godia, R. Madhok, J. Pittman, S. Trocio, R. Ramas, D. Cabral, R. L. Sacco, and T. Rundek Carotid Artery Distensibility: A Reliability Study J. Ultrasound Med., September 1, 2007; 26(9): 1157 - 1165. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. Kozakova, C. Palombo, L. Mhamdi, T. Konrad, P. Nilsson, P. B. Staehr, M. Paterni, B. Balkau, and on behalf of the RISC Investigators Habitual Physical Activity and Vascular Aging in a Young to Middle-Age Population at Low Cardiovascular Risk Stroke, September 1, 2007; 38(9): 2549 - 2555. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. J. Bos, P. J. Koudstaal, A. Hofman, J. C.M. Witteman, and M. M.B. Breteler Transcranial Doppler Hemodynamic Parameters and Risk of Stroke: The Rotterdam Study Stroke, September 1, 2007; 38(9): 2453 - 2458. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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B. Williams Hypertension in the Young: Preventing the Evolution of Disease Versus Prevention of Clinical Events J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., August 28, 2007; 50(9): 840 - 842. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. F. O'Rourke and J. Hashimoto Mechanical Factors in Arterial Aging: A Clinical Perspective J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., July 3, 2007; 50(1): 1 - 13. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. J. Roman, R. B. Devereux, J. R. Kizer, E. T. Lee, J. M. Galloway, T. Ali, J. G. Umans, and B. V. Howard Central Pressure More Strongly Relates to Vascular Disease and Outcome Than Does Brachial Pressure: The Strong Heart Study Hypertension, July 1, 2007; 50(1): 197 - 203. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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C. Vogelmeier and R. Bals Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease and Premature Aging Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., June 15, 2007; 175(12): 1217 - 1218. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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R. Sabit, C. E. Bolton, P. H. Edwards, R. J. Pettit, W. D. Evans, C. M. McEniery, I. B. Wilkinson, J. R. Cockcroft, and D. J. Shale Arterial Stiffness and Osteoporosis in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., June 15, 2007; 175(12): 1259 - 1265. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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K. D. Reesink, E. Hermeling, M. C. Hoeberigs, R. S. Reneman, and A. P. G. Hoeks Carotid artery pulse wave time characteristics to quantify ventriculoarterial responses to orthostatic challenge J Appl Physiol, June 1, 2007; 102(6): 2128 - 2134. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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M. M.H. Hermans, R. Henry, J. M. Dekker, J. P. Kooman, P. J. Kostense, G. Nijpels, R. J. Heine, and C. D.A. Stehouwer Estimated Glomerular Filtration Rate and Urinary Albumin Excretion Are Independently Associated with Greater Arterial Stiffness: The Hoorn Study J. Am. Soc. Nephrol., June 1, 2007; 18(6): 1942 - 1952. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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S. Laurent and P. Boutouyrie Recent Advances in Arterial Stiffness and Wave Reflection in Human Hypertension Hypertension, June 1, 2007; 49(6): 1202 - 1206. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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G. F. Mitchell, M. E. Dunlap, W. Warnica, A. Ducharme, J. M. O. Arnold, J.-C. Tardif, S. D. Solomon, M. J. Domanski, K. A. Jablonski, M. M. Rice, et al. Long-Term Trandolapril Treatment Is Associated With Reduced Aortic Stiffness: The Prevention of Events With Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibition Hemodynamic Substudy Hypertension, June 1, 2007; 49(6): 1271 - 1277. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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G. F. Mitchell, C.-Y. Guo, E. J. Benjamin, M. G. Larson, M. J. Keyes, J. A. Vita, R. S. Vasan, and D. Levy Cross-Sectional Correlates of Increased Aortic Stiffness in the Community: The Framingham Heart Study Circulation, May 22, 2007; 115(20): 2628 - 2636. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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L. F. Drager, L. A. Bortolotto, A. C. Figueiredo, B. C. Silva, E. M. Krieger, and G. Lorenzi-Filho Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Hypertension, and Their Interaction on Arterial Stiffness and Heart Remodeling Chest, May 1, 2007; 131(5): 1379 - 1386. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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J. Roquer, A. Ois, A. Rodriguez-Campello, M. Gomis, E. Munteis, J. Jimenez-Conde, E. Cuadrado-Godia, and J. E. Martinez-Rodriguez Atherosclerotic Burden and Early Mortality in Acute Ischemic Stroke Arch Neurol, May 1, 2007; 64(5): 699 - 704. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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J. Sanz, P. R. Moreno, and V. Fuster The Year in Atherothrombosis J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., April 24, 2007; 49(16): 1740 - 1749. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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I. J. Kullo and A. R. Malik Arterial Ultrasonography and Tonometry as Adjuncts to Cardiovascular Risk Stratification J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., April 3, 2007; 49(13): 1413 - 1426. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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J. M. Lee, C. Shirodaria, C. E Jackson, M. D Robson, C. Antoniades, J. M Francis, F. Wiesmann, K. M Channon, S. Neubauer, and R. P Choudhury Multi-modal magnetic resonance imaging quantifies atherosclerosis and vascular dysfunction in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus Diabetes and Vascular Disease Research, March 1, 2007; 4(1): 44 - 48. [Abstract] [PDF] |
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M. M.F. Poels, M. van Oijen, F. U.S. Mattace-Raso, A. Hofman, P. J. Koudstaal, J. C.M. Witteman, and M. M.B. Breteler Arterial Stiffness, Cognitive Decline, and Risk of Dementia: The Rotterdam Study Stroke, March 1, 2007; 38(3): 888 - 892. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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G. Schillaci, M. R. Mannarino, G. Pucci, M. Pirro, J. Helou, G. Savarese, G. Vaudo, and E. Mannarino Age-Specific Relationship of Aortic Pulse Wave Velocity With Left Ventricular Geometry and Function in Hypertension Hypertension, February 1, 2007; 49(2): 317 - 321. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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S. Laurent, J. Cockcroft, L. Van Bortel, P. Boutouyrie, C. Giannattasio, D. Hayoz, B. Pannier, C. Vlachopoulos, I. Wilkinson, H. Struijker-Boudier, et al. Expert consensus document on arterial stiffness: methodological issues and clinical applications Eur. Heart J., November 1, 2006; 27(21): 2588 - 2605. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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N.C. Edwards, R.P. Steeds, C.J. Ferro, and J.N. Townend The treatment of coronary artery disease in patients with chronic kidney disease QJM, November 1, 2006; 99(11): 723 - 736. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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B. Williams The Year in Hypertension J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., October 17, 2006; 48(8): 1698 - 1711. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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A. Simon, G. Chironi, and J. Levenson Performance of Subclinical Arterial Disease Detection as a Screening Test for Coronary Heart Disease Hypertension, September 1, 2006; 48(3): 392 - 396. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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J. T. Kielstein, F. Donnerstag, S. Gasper, J. Menne, A. Kielstein, J. Martens-Lobenhoffer, F. Scalera, J. P. Cooke, D. Fliser, and S. M. Bode-Boger ADMA Increases Arterial Stiffness and Decreases Cerebral Blood Flow in Humans Stroke, August 1, 2006; 37(8): 2024 - 2029. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
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J. N. Cohn Arterial Stiffness, Vascular Disease, and Risk of Cardiovascular Events Circulation, February 7, 2006; 113(5): 601 - 603. [Full Text] [PDF] |
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