Ultrasonic measurement of transient change in stress-strain property of radial arterial wall caused by endothelium-dependent vasodilation

The endothelial dysfunction is considered to be an initial step of atherosclerosis. Additionally, it was reported that the smooth muscle, which constructs the media of the artery, changes its characteristics owing to atherosclerosis. Therefore, it is essential to develop a method for assessing the regional endothelial function and mechanical property of the arterial wall. There is a conventional technique of measuring the transient change in the diameter of the brachial artery caused by flow-mediated dilation (FMD) after the release of avascularization. For more sensitive and regional evaluation, we developed a method of measuring the change in the elasticity of the radial artery due to FMD. In this study, the transient change in the mechanical property of the arterial wall was further revealed by measuring the stress-strain relationship during each heartbeat. The minute change in the thickness (strain) of the radial arterial wall during a cardiac cycle was measured by the phased tracking method, together with the waveform of blood pressure which was continuously measured with a sphygmometer at the radial artery. The transient change in stress-strain relationship during a cardiac cycle was obtained from the measured changes in wall thickness and blood pressure to show the transient change in instantaneous viscoelasticity. From the in vivo experimental results, the stress-strain relationship shows the hysteresis loop. The slope of the loop decreased owing to FMD, which shows that the elastic modulus decreased, and the increasing area of the loop depends on the ratio of the loss modulus (depends on viscosity) to the elastic modulus when the Voiat model is assumed. These results show a potential of the proposed method for the thorough analysis of the transient change in viscoelasticity due to FMD.