Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 14, 2026
A Methodological Approach to Non-invasive Assessments of Vascular Function and Morphology
Published on: February 7, 2015
Investigation of flow-mediated dilation response in normal coronary angiographic patients
Ertugrul Ercan1, Istemihan Tengiz, Can Duman
1Department of Cardiology, Central Hospital, Izmir, Turkey. ertugrulercan@yahoo.com
Insights
Normal coronary angiography does not guarantee healthy endothelial function. Impaired flow-mediated dilation (FMD) may indicate endothelial dysfunction, even with normal angiograms, suggesting FMD cannot predict coronary artery disease findings.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Vascular Biology
- Diagnostic Imaging
Background:
- Normal coronary angiography findings do not always correlate with normal endothelial function.
- Endothelial dysfunction, a precursor to cardiovascular disease, can be assessed by flow-mediated dilation (FMD).
- Factors like hypertension and hypercholesterolemia can negatively impact FMD response.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between flow-mediated dilation (FMD) and coronary angiographic results.
- To determine if FMD can predict coronary angiographic findings in patients with suspected or confirmed coronary artery disease.
Main Methods:
- A prospective cross-sectional study comparing FMD responses in different patient groups.
- Group I: Positive exercise stress test, normal coronary arteries. Group II: Significant coronary artery stenosis, stable angina. Group III: Normal stress test, no chest pain.
Main Results:
- Flow-mediated dilation (FMD) response was found to be unable to predict coronary angiographic results.
- Patients with normal coronary angiograms may exhibit impaired endothelial function.
Conclusions:
- Coronary angiography alone may not fully capture the presence of endothelial dysfunction.
- Impaired FMD can be an indicator of endothelial dysfunction even in the absence of significant coronary artery stenosis.
Abstract:
Normal findings from coronary angiography do not always show normal endothelial functions. An impaired flow-mediated dilation (FMD) can be a useful marker of the presence of endothelial dysfunction. Hypertension, left ventricular hypertrophy, hypercholesterolemia, and vasospastic angina pectoris can negatively affect FMD response. FMD responses of normal subjects and patients with coronary artery pathology were compared in a prospective cross-sectional study. Patients were divided into 3 groups. Group I patients had a positive exercise stress test and angiographically normal coronary arteries. Group II patients had angiographically significant coronary artery stenosis and stable angina pectoris. Group III had normal results from an exercise stress test and no chest pain. It was concluded that flow-mediated dilation response cannot predict coronary angiographic results. Patients with normal findings from coronary angiography may have impaired endothelial functions.
