Opposite changes in carotid versus aortic stiffness during healthy human pregnancy

Mersich, Beatrix; Rigó, János; Besenyei, Csilla; Lénárd, Zsuzsanna; Studinger, Péter; Kollai, Márk

doi:10.1042/cs20040352

Cited by 39 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 29 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Pregnant women demonstrate 100-fold higher blood levels of both estrone and estradiol, and 1,000-fold higher blood level of estriol compared with non-pregnant women in the same age group. 17 These high levels of estrogen derived from the placenta may be related to decreased arterial stiffness; a few clinical studies demonstrating improved endothelial function 18 and decreased PWV during pregnancy 19,20 support this.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 78%

Delivery May Affect Arterial Elasticity in Women

Hashimoto

Miyamoto

Iwai

et al. 2009

Circ J

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Circ J 2009; 73: 750 -754 he lower incidence of atherosclerosis in premenopausal women than in men is an established epidemiological observation. 1 Menopause is also a well-known coronary risk factor, 2,3 but estrogen replacement therapy for postmenopausal women has not shown the hoped-for results in either primary (WHI: Women's Health Initiative) or secondary (HERS: Heart and Estrogen/Progestin Replacement Study) cardiovascular event prevention. [4][5][6] Even though large clinical studies such as HERS and WHI showed no additional benefit from exogenous estrogen to prevent atherosclerosis, we believe endogenous estrogen may help to prevent atherosclerosis. During normal menstrual cycles, women show high levels of estrogen just before ovulation and during the luteal phase. Previously we and other researchers reported that endothelium-dependent vasodilatation is increased in young women during the phases of their menstrual cycles when endogenous estrogen levels are high, 7 and pregnant women show significantly high levels of estrogen. Therefore, we hypothesized that if women have been exposed for a longer time and/or at a higher level to endogenous estrogen, they may obtain estrogen's beneficial "cardioprotective" or "anti-atherosclerosis" effect. To examine this hypothesis, we enrolled a substantial number of women and used a fairly simple measurement to evaluate clinical arteriosclerosis. Increased arterial stiffness, as reflected by an increased pulse wave velocity (PWV), is a risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. 3 PWV is a non-invasive technique widely used in the clinical setting, so we measured the brachial-ankle PWV (baPWV) as an indicator of arteriosclerosis. Although the baPWV reflects central and peripheral arterial stiffness, it is closely correlated with aortic arterial stiffness and the severity of atherosclerosis, 8 so we considered it might be useful as both a marker of cardiovascular risk and an indicator of clinical arteriosclerosis.In this cross-sectional study, we examined the association between pregnancy followed by delivery (number of both gravida and para) and the baPWV. MethodsA total of 2,560 women undergoing an annual health screening examination at the institute of Hyogo Prefecture Health Promotion Association were recruited for the study (age range 22-83 years). Subjects with an ankle-brachial pressure index of less than 0.9 and with a significant arrhythmia such as atrial fibrillation, which may affect the results of PWV, were excluded from the study. Informed consent was obtained from all of the women who were enrolled and the study protocol was approved by the Ethics Committee of Hyogo Prefecture Health Promotion Association. The age at menarche, pregnancy history (number of both gravida and para), menopausal status and the use of estrogen replacement therapy were obtained by a selfreporting questionnaire, which was confirmed by medical staff at the Institute. Conventional coronary risk factors, (Received May 7, 2008; revised manuscript received November 7, 2...

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 78%

Delivery May Affect Arterial Elasticity in Women

Hashimoto

Miyamoto

Iwai

et al. 2009

Circ J

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…As part of this adaptation, muscular (brachial) artery stiffness, as measured by carotid-radial pulse wave velocity (PWV), is decreased with pregnancy (28,39). In contrast to the peripheral vasculature, the carotid artery has been found to stiffen during pregnancy (30). Several studies have indicated that some of these pregnancy-induced adaptations persist past one year after delivery (7,11).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of hyperglycemia during and after pregnancy on postpartum vascular function

Davenport

Goswami

Shoemaker

et al. 2012

American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comp

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…With aging and hypertension, rigidity of these vessels increases with a concomitant increase of diameter (Farasat 2008, Giumelly 1999, Safar 2005. In vivo elasticity is frequently measured in form of pulse wave velocity (Huotari 2010, Westerhof 2007), aortic compliance (Long 2004, Mersich 2005, input impedance (Mazzaro 2005) or augmentation index (Safar 2005). Exercise training can stimulate elastin production and reduce high-stress stiffness (DeAndrade 2010).…”

Section: Windkessel Artery and Distributing Artery Biomechanicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Modern ultrasonography (from the surface of the body and also intravascular) provides sufficient means for larger vessels (Berczi 2005, Molnar 2006, Mersich 2005, Shimazu 1986). A certain level of manipulation of pressure and smooth muscle tone is possible even in human volunteers (See Fig.…”

Section: Parameters Measuring Elasticitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Deteriorating Windkessel function of the aged, of the chronic hypertensive, even after effective treatment of mean arterial pressure, geometric, biomechanical consequences of atheroscerotic focal remodeling of large arteries, contractile and elastic remodeling of resistance arteries with aging, with hypertension and with diabetes, remodeling of venous networks and the venous wall in chronic venous disease, inevitably draws the attention of clinicians and of pathologists to biomechanical questions. Recent developments in vascular mechanics, backed with many methodical improvements in the field (Berczi 2005, Cox 1974, Duling 1981, Huotari 2010, Mersich 2005, Shimazu 1986, integration of these results into the context of reliable older knowledge makes now a systemic overview of the most important aspects of vascular mechanics possible. We will see that an almost axiomatic approach to a phenomenological description of vascular biomechanics is now in sight.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation