Image-free evaluation of carotid artery stiffness using ARTSENS: a repeatability study

Evaluation of arterial stiffness is significant in early detection and vascular diagnosis. We have developed and validated an image free system called ARTSENS for evaluation of carotid artery stiffness. In this paper, we present a detailed study on the repeatability of arterial stiffness measurements performed using ARTSENS. The study protocol was designed to emulate typical constraints encountered in field usage of ARTSENS as a screening tool. The intra operator variability (repeatability) of ARTSENS was verified by in-vivo measurements on 18 subjects. Inter operator variability (reproducibility) was also studied. The ability of the instrument to give reliable measurements in both sitting and supine posture of the subject was verified. Further, the variation of arterial stiffness measurements over different times of the day was investigated to verify the ability of the instrument to give a practically usable stable measure of stiffness. The repeatability and reproducibility of ARTSENS measurements was found to be comparable to those provided by state of art image-based systems. Stiffness measurements provided by ARTSENS were found to be stable over a day indicating utility of the instrument in providing a quick and reliable measure of carotid artery stiffness.