Open AccessFive years of cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) and CAVI0: how close are we to a pressure-independent index of arterial stiffness?
Author(s) -
Alessandro Giudici,
Ashraf W. Khir,
Koen D. Reesink,
Tammo Delhaas,
Bart Spronck
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of hypertension
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.249
H-Index - 172
eISSN - 1473-5598
pISSN - 0263-6352
DOI - 10.1097/hjh.0000000000002928
Subject(s) - arterial stiffness , medicine , blood pressure , cardiology , pulse pressure , metric (unit) , ankle , pulse wave velocity , stiffness , index (typography) , surgery , structural engineering , world wide web , computer science , operations management , engineering , economics
Pulse wave velocity, a common metric of arterial stiffness, is an established predictor for cardiovascular events and mortality. However, its intrinsic pressure-dependency complicates the discrimination of acute and chronic impacts of increased blood pressure on arterial stiffness. Cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) represented a significant step towards the development of a pressure-independent arterial stiffness metric. However, some potential limitations of CAVI might render this arterial stiffness metric less pressure-independent than originally thought. For this reason, we later introduced CAVI0. Nevertheless, advantages of one approach over the other are left debated. This review aims to shed light on the pressure (in)dependency of both CAVI and CAVI0. By critically reviewing results from studies reporting both CAVI and CAVI0 and using simple analytical methods, we show that CAVI0 may enhance the pressure-independent assessment of arterial stiffness, especially in the presence of large inter-individual differences in blood pressure.