Automatic or manual arterial path for the ankle-brachial differences pulse wave velocity

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular physiology
• Medical device technology
• Biomedical engineering

Background:

• Automated methods for measuring arterial path length are common for pulse wave velocity (PWV) assessment.
• Accurate arterial path length is crucial for reliable PWV measurements in peripheral arteries.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare manual arterial path length measurements with height-based formulas.
• To evaluate the comparability of ankle-brachial difference in pulse wave velocity (abD-PWV) using automated versus manual methods.

Main Methods:

• Manual arterial path length measurement using a tape measure from suprasternal notch to VOPITB cuff midpoint in 245 patients.
• Comparison of manual measurements with height-based formulas.
• Assessment of abD-PWV using both manual and automated methods.

Main Results:

• Manual measurements yielded shorter arterial path lengths than automated calculations (13% arms, 21% legs).
• Automated abD-PWV was significantly higher (462 cm/s) than manual (346 cm/s).
• Bland-Altman analysis indicated percentage errors of 15.2% (heart-brachial), 7.5% (heart-ankle length), and 17.3% (abD-PWV), suggesting comparability despite differences.

Conclusions:

• Significant discrepancies exist between manual and automated arterial length measurements.
• These differences influence abD-PWV calculations.
• Height-based formulas may be the preferred method for abD-PWV measurement due to their advantages.