Automatic brachial ankle pulse wave velocity measurements for vascular damage assessments

An automatic brachial ankle pulse wave velocity device was developed using plethysmographic method based on blood pressure cuffs wrapped on arm brachial artery and tibial artery of ankle. Three electrodes of electrocardiogram were placed on ventral surface of both wrists and medial side of right ankle. The acquired signals of volume pulse and ECG were displayed. The pulse transit time between brachium and ankle was calculated as the time difference between maximal time derivative points and foot-to-foot pulse waves originated by the same QRS complex. A study was carried out with 39 people, 22 healthy volunteers and 17 patients with diagnosed cardiovascular diseases. A t-tested distributions of brachial ankle pulse wave velocity were performed. They showed that using maximal time derivative is more accurate than foot-to-foot pulse wave both in patients with cardiovacular disease and in healthy volunteers.