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BACKGROUND: Arterial stiffness, as measured by arterial pulse wave velocity (PWV), is an established biomarker for cardiovascular risk and target-organ damage in individuals with hypertension. With the emergence of new devices for assessing PWV, it has become evident that some of these devices yield results that display significant discrepancies compared with previous devices. This discrepancy underscores the importance of comprehensive validation procedures and the need for international recommendations. METHODS: A stepwise approach utilizing the modified Delphi technique, with the involvement of key scientific societies dedicated to arterial stiffness research worldwide, was adopted to formulate, through a multidisciplinary vision, a shared approach to the validation of noninvasive arterial PWV measurement devices. RESULTS: A set of recommendations has been developed, which aim to provide guidance to clinicians, researchers, and device manufacturers regarding the validation of new PWV measurement devices. The intention behind these recommendations is to ensure that the validation process can be conducted in a rigorous and consistent manner and to promote standardization and harmonization among PWV devices, thereby facilitating their widespread adoption in clinical practice. CONCLUSIONS: It is hoped that these recommendations will encourage both users and developers of PWV measurement devices to critically evaluate and validate their technologies, ultimately leading to improved consistency and comparability of results. This, in turn, will enhance the clinical utility of PWV as a valuable tool for assessing arterial stiffness and informing cardiovascular risk stratification and management in individuals with hypertension. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Renal denervation (RDN) lowers blood pressure (BP), but BP response is variable in individual patients. We investigated whether measures of pulsatile hemodynamics, obtained during 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring, predict BP drop following RDN.Methods: From the randomized, sham-controlled SPYRAL HTN-OFF MED Pivotal trial, we performed a post hoc analysis of BP waveforms from 111 RDN patients and 111 sham controls, obtained with a brachial cuff-based sphygmomanometer. Waveforms were acquired during ambulatory BP monitoring at diastolic BP level and processed with validated ARCSolver algorithms to derive hemodynamic parameters (augmentation index; augmentation pressure; backward and forward wave amplitude; estimated aortic pulse wave velocity). We investigated the relationship between averaged 24-hour values at baseline and the change in 24-hour BP at 3 months in RDN patients, corrected for observed trends in the sham group.Results: There was a consistent inverse relationship between baseline augmentation index/augmentation pressure/backward wave amplitude/forward wave amplitude/estimated aortic pulse wave velocity and BP response to RDN: the decrease in 24-hour systolic BP/diastolic BP was 7.8/5.9 (augmentation index), 8.0/6.3 (augmentation pressure), 6.7/5.4 (backward wave amplitude), 5.7/4.7 (forward wave amplitude), and 7.8/5.2 (estimated aortic pulse wave velocity) mm Hg greater for patients below versus above the respective median value (P<0.001 for all comparisons, respectively). Taking augmentation index/augmentation pressure/backward wave amplitude/forward wave amplitude/estimated aortic pulse wave velocity into account, a favorable BP response following RDN, defined as a drop in 24-hour systolic blood pressure of ≥5 mm Hg, could be predicted with an area under the curve of 0.70/0.74/0.70/0.65/0.62 (P<0.001 for all, respectively).Conclusions: These results suggest that pulsatile hemodynamics, obtained during 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring, may predict BP response to RDN. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Central (aortic) systolic blood pressure (cSBP) is the pressure seen by the heart, the brain, and the kidneys. If properly measured, cSBP is closer associated with hypertension-mediated organ damage and prognosis, as compared with brachial SBP (bSBP). We investigated 24-hour profiles of bSBP and cSBP, measured simultaneously using Mobilograph devices, in 2423 untreated adults (1275 women; age, 18-94 years), free from overt cardiovascular disease, aiming to develop reference values and to analyze daytime-nighttime variability. Central SBP was assessed, using brachial waveforms, calibrated with mean arterial pressure (MAP)/diastolic BP (cSBPMAP/DBPcal), or bSBP/diastolic blood pressure (cSBPSBP/DBPcal), and a validated transfer function, resulting in 144 509 valid brachial and 130 804 valid central measurements. Averaged 24-hour, daytime, and nighttime brachial BP across all individuals was 124/79, 126/81, and 116/72 mm Hg, respectively. Averaged 24-hour, daytime, and nighttime values for cSBPMAP/DBPcal were 128, 128, and 125 mm Hg and 115, 117, and 107 mm Hg for cSBPSBP/DBPcal, respectively. We pragmatically propose as upper normal limit for 24-hour cSBPMAP/DBPcal 135 mm Hg and for 24-hour cSBPSBP/DBPcal 120 mm Hg. bSBP dipping (nighttime-daytime/daytime SBP) was -10.6 % in young participants and decreased with increasing age. Central SBPSBP/DBPcal dipping was less pronounced (-8.7% in young participants). In contrast, cSBPMAP/DBPcal dipping was completely absent in the youngest age group and less pronounced in all other participants. These data may serve for comparison in various diseases and have potential implications for refining hypertension diagnosis and management. The different dipping behavior of bSBP versus cSBP requires further investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) is directly related to arterial stiffness. Different methods for the determination of PWV coexist. The aim of this prospective study was to evaluate the prognostic value of PWV in high-risk patients with suspected coronary artery disease undergoing invasive angiography and to compare 3 different methods for assessing PWV. In 1040 patients, invasive PWV (iPWV) was measured during catheter pullback. Additionally, PWV was estimated with a model incorporating age, central systolic blood pressure, and pulse waveform characteristics obtained from noninvasive measurements (estimated PWV). As a third method, PWV was calculated with a formula solely based on age and blood pressure (formula-based PWV). Survival analysis was based on continuous PWV as well as using cutoff values. After a median follow-up duration of 1565 days, 24% of the patients reached the combined end point (cardiovascular events or mortality). Cox proportional hazard ratios per 1 SD were 1.35 for iPWV, 1.37 for estimated PWV, and 1.28 for formula-based PWV (P<0.0001 for all 3 methods) in univariate analysis, remaining statistically significant after comprehensive multivariable adjustments. In a model including a modified risk score for coronary artery disease, iPWV and estimated PWV remained borderline significant. The net reclassification improvement was significant for iPWV (0.173), formula-based PWV (0.181), and estimated PWV (0.230). All 3 methods for the determination of PWV predicted cardiovascular events and mortality in patients with suspected coronary artery disease. This indicates that iPWV as well as both noninvasive estimation methods are suitable for the assessment of arterial stiffness, bearing in mind their individual characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Heart failure (HF), hypertension, and abnormal nocturnal blood pressure dipping are highly prevalent in hemodialysis patients. Atrial fibrillation (AF) and HF might be important mediators for the association of abnormal dipping patterns with worse prognosis. Thus, the aim of this study is to investigate the association of dipping with mortality in hemodialysis patients and to assess the influence of AF and HF. In total, 525 hemodialysis patients underwent 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring. All-cause and cardiovascular mortality served as end points. Patients were categorized according to their systolic dipping pattern (dipper, nondipper, and reverse dipper). Cox regression analysis was performed to determine the association between dipping pattern and study end points with dipping as reference. Subgroup analysis was performed for patients with and without AF or HF. In total, 185 patients with AF or HF and 340 patients without AF or HF were included. During a median follow-up of 37.8 months, 177 patients died; 81 from cardiovascular causes. Nondipping and reverse dipping were significantly associated with all-cause mortality in the whole cohort (nondipper: hazard ratio, 1.95 [1.22-3.14]; P=0.006; reverse dipper: hazard ratio, 2.31 [1.42-3.76]; P<0.001) and in patients without AF or HF (nondipper: hazard ratio, 2.78 [1.16-6.66]; P=0.02; reverse dipper: hazard ratio, 4.48 [1.87-10.71]; P<0.001) but not in patients with AF or HF. For cardiovascular mortality, associations were again significant in patients without AF or HF and in the whole cohort. The observed associations remained significant after adjustment for possible confounders. This study provides well-powered evidence for the association between abnormal dipping patterns and mortality in hemodialysis patients and suggests that HF or AF modifies this association. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The prognostic value of central systolic blood pressure has been established recently. At present, its noninvasive assessment is limited by the need of dedicated equipment and trained operators. Moreover, ambulatory and home blood pressure monitoring of central pressures are not feasible. An algorithm enabling conventional automated oscillometric blood pressure monitors to assess central systolic pressure could be of value. We compared central systolic pressure, calculated with a transfer-function like method (ARCSolver algorithm), using waveforms recorded with a regular oscillometric cuff suitable for ambulatory measurements, with simultaneous high-fidelity invasive recordings, and with noninvasive estimations using a validated device, operating with radial tonometry and a generalized transfer function. Both studies revealed a good agreement between the oscillometric cuff-based central systolic pressure and the comparator. In the invasive study, composed of 30 patients, mean difference between oscillometric cuff/ARCSolver-based and invasive central systolic pressures was 3.0 mm Hg (SD: 6.0 mm Hg) with invasive calibration of brachial waveforms and -3.0 mm Hg (SD: 9.5 mm Hg) with noninvasive calibration of brachial waveforms. Results were similar when the reference method (radial tonometry/transfer function) was compared with invasive measurements. In the noninvasive study, composed of 111 patients, mean difference between oscillometric cuff/ARCSolver-derived and radial tonometry/transfer function-derived central systolic pressures was -0.5 mm Hg (SD: 4.7 mm Hg). In conclusion, a novel transfer function-like algorithm, using brachial cuff-based waveform recordings, is suited to provide a realistic estimation of central systolic pressure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]