Physiological reports
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Physiological reports · Jul 2016
Carotid artery longitudinal wall motion is associated with local blood velocity and left ventricular rotational, but not longitudinal, mechanics.
Recent studies have identified a predictable movement pattern of the common carotid artery wall in the longitudinal direction. While there is evidence that the magnitude of this carotid artery longitudinal wall motion (CALM) is sensitive to cardiovascular health status, little is known about the determinants of CALM The purpose of this integrative study was to evaluate the contribution of left ventricular (LV) cardiac motion and local blood velocity to CALM Simultaneous ultrasound measurements of CALM, common carotid artery mean blood velocity (MBV), and left ventricular motion were performed in ten young, healthy individuals (6 males; 22 ± 1 years). Peak anterograde CALM occurred at a similar time as peak MBV (18.57 ± 3.98% vs. 18.53 ± 2.81% cardiac cycle; t-test: P = 0.94; ICC: 0.79, P < 0.01). ⋯ The association between basal rotation and retrograde CALM was further supported by strong correlations between their peak magnitudes (r = -0.70, P = 0.02), whereas the magnitude of septal longitudinal displacement was not associated with peak CALM (r = 0.11, P = 0.77). These results suggest that the rotational mechanical movement of the LV base may be closely associated with longitudinal mechanics in the carotid artery. This finding may have important implications for interpreting the complex relationship between ventricular and vascular function.