Diagnostic Criteria of Flow‐Mediated Vasodilation for Normal Endothelial Function and Nitroglycerin‐Induced Vasodilation for Normal Vascular Smooth Muscle Function of the Brachial Artery

Background Diagnostic criteria of flow‐mediated vasodilation (FMD), an index of endothelial function, and nitroglycerin‐induced vasodilation (NID), an index of vascular smooth muscle function, of the brachial artery have not been established. The purpose of this study was to propose diagnostic criteria of FMD and NID for normal endothelial function and normal vascular smooth muscle function. Methods and Results We investigated the cutoff values of FMD and NID in subjects with (risk group) and those without cardiovascular risk factors or cardiovascular diseases (no‐risk group) in 7277 Japanese subjects (mean age 51.4±10.8 years) from the Flow‐Mediated Dilation Japan study and the Flow‐Mediated Dilatation Japan Registry study for analysis of the cutoff value of FMD and in 1764 Japanese subjects (62.2±16.1 years) from the registry of Hiroshima University Hospital for analysis of the cutoff value of NID. Receiver‐operator characteristic curve analysis of FMD to discriminate subjects in the no‐risk group from patients in the risk group showed that the optimal cutoff value of FMD to diagnose subjects in the no‐risk group was 7.1%. Receiver‐operator characteristic curve analysis of NID to discriminate subjects in the no‐risk group from patients in the risk group showed that the optimal cutoff value of NID to diagnose subjects in the no‐risk group was 15.6%. Conclusions We propose that the cutoff value for normal endothelial function assessed by FMD of the brachial artery is 7.1% and that the cutoff value for normal vascular smooth muscle function assessed by NID of the brachial artery is 15.6% in Japanese subjects. Clinical Trial Registration www.umin.ac.jp Unique identifiers: UMIN000012950, UMIN000012951, UMIN000012952, and UMIN000003409

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Vascular Dysfunction Predicts Future Deterioration of Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction in Patients with Heart Failure with Mildly Reduced Ejection Fraction

Journal of Clinical Medicine ◽

10.3390/jcm10245980 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (24) ◽

pp. 5980

Author(s):

Shinji Kishimoto ◽

Tatsuya Maruhashi ◽

Masato Kajikawa ◽

Takahiro Harada ◽

Takayuki Yamaji ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Heart Failure ◽

Smooth Muscle ◽

Ejection Fraction ◽

Vascular Smooth Muscle ◽

Endothelial Function ◽

Muscle Function ◽

Vascular Dysfunction ◽

Left Ventricular Ejection ◽

Reduced Ejection Fraction ◽

Smooth Muscle Function

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether heart failure with mildly reduced ejection fraction (HFmrEF) is associated with vascular dysfunction and whether vascular function predicts future deterioration of LVEF in patients with HFmrEF. We evaluated endothelial function assessed by flow-mediated vasodilation (FMD) and vascular smooth muscle function assessed by nitroglycerine-induced vasodilation (NID) in 69 patients with HFmrEF and 426 patients without HF and evaluated the future deterioration of LVEF, defined as a decrease in LVEF to <40%, in 39 patients with HFmrEF for up to 3 years. Both FMD and NID were significantly lower in patients with HFmrEF than in patients without HF. We categorized patients into two groups based on low tertiles of NID: a low group (NID of <7.0%) and an intermediate and high group (NID of ≥7.0%). There were significant differences between the Kaplan–Meier curves for the deterioration of LVEF in the two groups (p < 0.01). Multivariate Cox proportional hazard analysis revealed that NID of <7.0% was an independent predictor of future deterioration of LVEF in patients with HFmrEF. Both endothelial function and vascular smooth muscle function are impaired in patients with HFmrEF compared with those in patients without HF. In addition, low NID of <7.0% predicts future deterioration of LVEF.

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Detrimental Effects of Nearby Construction Activity on Endothelial and Vascular Smooth Muscle Function in Cerebral Arteries of Sprague‐Dawley (S‐D) Rats

The FASEB Journal ◽

10.1096/fasebj.2019.33.1_supplement.683.1 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 33 (S1) ◽

Author(s):

Julian H. Lombard ◽

Maia Terashvili ◽

Kaleigh Kozak ◽

Alison Gifford ◽

Nnamdi Uche ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Smooth Muscle ◽

Vascular Smooth Muscle ◽

Muscle Function ◽

Cerebral Arteries ◽

Sprague Dawley ◽

Smooth Muscle Function ◽

Construction Activity

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Fundamental Roles of Axial Stretch in Isometric and Isobaric Evaluations of Vascular Contractility

Journal of Biomechanical Engineering ◽

10.1115/1.4042171 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 141 (3) ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Alexander W. Caulk ◽

Jay D. Humphrey ◽

Sae-Il Murtada

Keyword(s):

Smooth Muscle ◽

Vascular Smooth Muscle ◽

Muscle Function ◽

Contractile Function ◽

Contractile Activity ◽

Comparison Of Methods ◽

Axial Stretch ◽

Smooth Muscle Function ◽

In Vivo Loading

Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) can regulate arterial mechanics via contractile activity in response to changing mechanical and chemical signals. Contractility is traditionally evaluated via uniaxial isometric testing of isolated rings despite the in vivo environment being very different. Most blood vessels maintain a locally preferred value of in vivo axial stretch while subjected to changes in distending pressure, but both of these phenomena are obscured in uniaxial isometric testing. Few studies have rigorously analyzed the role of in vivo loading conditions in smooth muscle function. Thus, we evaluated effects of uniaxial versus biaxial deformations on smooth muscle contractility by stimulating two regions of the mouse aorta with different vasoconstrictors using one of three testing protocols: (i) uniaxial isometric testing, (ii) biaxial isometric testing, and (iii) axially isometric plus isobaric testing. Comparison of methods (i) and (ii) revealed increased sensitivity and contractile capacity to potassium chloride and phenylephrine (PE) with biaxial isometric testing, and comparison of methods (ii) and (iii) revealed a further increase in contractile capacity with isometric plus isobaric testing. Importantly, regional differences in estimated in vivo axial stretch suggest locally distinct optimal biaxial configurations for achieving maximal smooth muscle contraction, which can only be revealed with biaxial testing. Such differences highlight the importance of considering in vivo loading and geometric configurations when evaluating smooth muscle function. Given the physiologic relevance of axial extension and luminal pressurization, we submit that, when possible, axially isometric plus isobaric testing should be employed to evaluate vascular smooth muscle contractile function.

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