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Updated: Mar 23, 2026
Measuring the Carotid to Femoral Pulse Wave Velocity Cf-PWV to Evaluate Arterial Stiffness
Published on: May 3, 2018
Relationship between FEV1 and arterial stiffness in elderly people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Luisa Costanzo1, Claudio Pedone2,3, Fabrizio Battistoni4
1Area di Geriatria, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Via Álvaro del Portillo 200, 00128, Rome, Italy. l.costanzo@unicampus.it.
Background:
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is highly prevalent in the elderly, and both COPD and age per se are associated with cardiovascular morbidity.
Aims:
We tested the hypothesis that in elderly COPD patients airflow limitation is associated with arterial stiffness and the relationship, if any, is related to endothelial function and systemic inflammation.
Methods:
We evaluated lung function, augmentation index (AIx), flow-mediated dilation (FMD), Interleukin-6 (IL-6), and asymmetric dymethilarginine (ADMA) levels in 76 subjects (mean age 73.9 years, SD 6.2) attending a geriatric outpatient clinic.
Results:
Participants with COPD (N = 41) and controls (N = 35) did not differ in terms of AIx (30 vs 28.2 %, P = 0.30) and FMD (14.2 vs 12.3 %, P = 0.10). Similarly, the two groups did not differ with respect to mean concentrations of inflammation markers (IL-6 and C-reactive protein) and ADMA. Among COPD participants there was an inverse correlation between AIx and Forced Expiratory Volume in the first second (r = -0.349, P = 0.02). This relationship remained significant after correction for potential confounders, including markers of inflammation and ADMA levels (β = -0.194, P = 0.001).
Discussion:
According to the results of this study, among COPD patients, bronchial patency and AIx are inversely related, and the relationship is explained neither by endothelial function nor by systemic inflammation.
Conclusions:
In elderly COPD people, increased arterial stiffness is related to reduced pulmonary function and it seems worth testing as a potential marker of higher cardiovascular risk.
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