Arterial stiffness – A measurable vascular marker in clinical practice

Arterial stiffness results from the changes in the walls of the large vessels and aorta. It has been incriminated in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disorders. Its association with the major risk factors and atherosclerosis has been explored. Pulse wave velocity (PWV) is generally measured to evaluate it. Noninvasive methods of its measurement, which have been found to be satisfactory inaccuracy, make it a very attractive tool for cardiovascular risk assessment. In clinical practice, probe-based or cuff-based systems are commonly used to measure arterial stiffness. It may well be suited for the detection of vascular abnormality of an intermediate clinical phenotype and has been shown to be a marker of poorer prognosis in some diseases like chronic kidney disease. It has also been found to be reversible in clinical studies, although in the early stages. Given the global burgeoning cardiovascular diseases, it may serve as an attractive clinical screening tool that may be applied to a large population to implement early preventive strategies and utilize the limited resources to those with abnormal findings. Region-specific guidelines do recommend measurement of PWV. However, in the real world, the measurement of arterial stiffness remains underutilized as yet.