Radial augmentation index: a useful and easily obtainable parameter for vascular aging
Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 19, 2026
Assessment of Vascular Function in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease
Published on: June 16, 2014
Katsuhiko Kohara1, Yasuharu Tabara, Akira Oshiumi
1Department of Geriatric Medicine, Ehime University School of Medicine, Ehime, Japan.
Background:
It has been shown that the systolic augmentation index (AI) in the central arteries, including the aorta and carotid arteries, changes with age. The AI can also be obtained from the peripheral arteries. The possible usefulness of AI obtained from the radial artery as an index for vascular aging was investigated.
Methods:
Radial arterial waveforms were obtained from 632 subjects with no cardiovascular disease, using radial tonometry. Radial AI was calculated as follows: (Second peak systolic blood pressure [SBP2] - diastolic blood pressure [DBP]) / (first peak SBP - DBP) x100 (%).
Results:
Radial AI was significantly higher in women than in men (81.1% +/- 16.1% compared with 69.5% +/- 16.3%, P < .001). Radial AI was positively related to age in healthy men and women (r = 0.619, P < .001, and r = 0.644, P < .001, respectively). When comparing subjects in their 20s to those in their 70s, radial AI increased 1.56 times (from 53.2% to 83.0%) in men and 1.49 times (from 64.6% to 96.4%) in women. Multiple regression analysis showed that age is a potent predictor of radial AI in addition to gender, DBP and pulse rate.
Conclusions:
These findings indicate that simple and easily-obtainable radial AI is age-dependent and could be a useful index of vascular aging.
Related Concept Videos
01:11Assessment of radial pulse
The radial pulse, located at the wrist, is often the preferred site for assessing peripheral pulse because of its accessibility and dependability. The process of determining the radial pulse involves several steps:
01:21Peripheral Arterial Disease II: Clinical Manifestations and Diagnostic Evaluation