Validation of Repeated Endothelial Function Measurements Using EndoPAT in Stroke.

Area of Science:

• Vascular Medicine
• Cardiology
• Neurology

Background:

• Endothelial function (EF) is a potential prognostic marker for stroke.
• Personalized medicine approaches for stroke prevention may involve measuring pharmacological effects on EF.
• Assessing the reliability of EF measurements is crucial for clinical application.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the reliability of repeated endothelial function (EF) measurements using pulse amplitude tonometry.
• To compare measurement reliability in acute stroke patients versus healthy subjects.
• To determine the most reliable outcome measure for EF assessment.

Main Methods:

• Endothelial function (EF) was measured using the EndoPAT2000 device in 20 healthy volunteers and 21 stroke patients.
• Measurements included reactive hyperemia index (RHI), logarithm of RHI (lnRHI), and Framingham RHI (fRHI).
• Reliability was assessed through same-day (1.5 hours apart) and day-to-day (24 hours apart) repeated measurements.

Main Results:

• Healthy subjects showed fair to moderate same-day (ICC=0.29) and moderate day-to-day (ICC=0.52) reliability.
• Stroke patients demonstrated moderate same-day (ICC=0.40) and substantial day-to-day (ICC=0.62) reliability.
• Framingham RHI (fRHI) exhibited superior reliability compared to RHI and lnRHI.

Conclusions:

• Repeated fRHI measurements show moderate same-day and substantial day-to-day reliability in stroke patients.
• Day-to-day EF measurements are generally more reliable than same-day measurements across both groups.
• Potential carryover effects necessitate caution when considering same-day repeated testing for drug efficacy studies.