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Non-invasive Assessment of Microvascular and Endothelial Function
05:41

Non-invasive Assessment of Microvascular and Endothelial Function

Published on: January 29, 2013

Association of cardiovascular risk factors with microvascular and conduit artery function in hypertensive subjects

Iftikhar J Kullo1, A Rauoof Malik, Simone Santos

  • 1Division of Cardiovascular Diseases, Mayo Clinic and Foundation, Rochester, Minnesota 55905, USA. Kullo.iftikhar@mayo.edu

American Journal of Hypertension
|June 26, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Cardiovascular risk factors impact blood vessel function in hypertension. Key factors like homocysteine and age are linked to impaired microvascular and conduit artery function, independent of each other.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Medicine
  • Hypertension Research
  • Vascular Biology

Background:

  • Hypertension is linked to target organ damage via microvascular and conduit artery dysfunction.
  • Understanding the interplay of cardiovascular (CV) risk factors with vascular function is crucial in hypertensive individuals.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between CV risk factors and both microvascular and conduit artery function in hypertensive subjects.
  • To identify specific risk factors impacting forearm blood flow (FBF) and brachial artery flow-mediated dilatation (FMD).

Main Methods:

  • Utilized brachial artery ultrasound to assess FBF during reactive hyperemia (microvascular function) and FMD (conduit artery endothelial function) in 504 hypertensive patients.
  • Examined associations of conventional and novel CV risk factors (including homocysteine, CRP, fibrinogen, lipoprotein a) with vascular function using multivariable regression models.

Main Results:

  • Male sex, higher BMI, smoking, and lower HDL-cholesterol were linked to higher resting FBF.
  • Older age, female sex, and diabetes were associated with lower hyperemic FBF.
  • Elevated homocysteine correlated with reduced hyperemic FBF in obese individuals and lower FMD in those with higher systolic blood pressure.
  • Older age, female sex, smoking history, and non-statin use were independently associated with lower FMD.

Conclusions:

  • Specific cardiovascular risk factors are associated with impaired microvascular and conduit artery function in asymptomatic hypertensive patients.
  • The impact of CV risk factors on conduit artery function appears to be independent of microvascular function.
Abstract

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