Abstract
Cardiovascular disease is the primary cause of mortality and a major cause of disability worldwide. The dysfunction of the vascular endothelium is a pathological condition characterized mainly by a disruption in the balance between vasodilator and vasoconstrictor substances and is proposed to play an important role in the development of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. Therefore, a precise evaluation of endothelial function in humans represents an important tool that could help better understand the etiology of multiple cardio-centric pathologies. Over the past twenty-five years, many methodological approaches have been developed to provide an assessment of endothelial function in humans. Introduced in 1989, the FMD test incorporates a forearm occlusion and subsequent reactive hyperemia that promotes nitric oxide production and vasodilation of the brachial artery. The FMD test is now the most widely utilized, non-invasive, ultrasonic assessment of endothelial function in humans and has been associated with future cardiovascular events. Although the FMD test could have clinical utility, it is a physiological assessment that has inherited several confounding factors that need to be considered. This article describes a standardized protocol for determining FMD including the recommended methodology to help minimize the physiological and technical issues and improve the precision and reproducibility of the assessment.
Original language | English (US) |
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Article number | e54011 |
Journal | Journal of Visualized Experiments |
Volume | 2016 |
Issue number | 110 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Apr 2016 |
Keywords
- Brachial artery
- Cardiovascular disease
- Endothelial function
- Endothelium
- Flow-mediated dilation
- Issue 110
- Medicine
- Ultrasound
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General Neuroscience
- General Chemical Engineering
- General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology
- General Immunology and Microbiology