Similar pressure pulse propagation and reflection characteristics in aortas of mammals.

Similar pressure and flow waveforms recorded in mammalian aortas suggest that pulse transmission characteristics may also be similar. We examined the validity of this hypothesis, utilizing allometric equations of pertinent hemodynamic parameters and a model of the arterial system. Results show that both the reflection coefficient and the propagation constant times the aortic length are essentially invariant across the mammalian species investigated. Resolved forward and reflected propagating waves are also similar. These findings suggest that the arterial system in these mammals indeed functions in a similar manner.