Research Institute for Sport and Exercise Science, Tom Reilly Bldg., Liverpool John Moores University, Byrom St., Liverpool L3 3AF, UK.
J Appl Physiol (1985). 2011 Jul;111(1):244-50. doi: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00290.2011. Epub 2011 Apr 21.
Brachial artery flow-mediated dilation (FMD) is a strong predictor of future cardiovascular disease and is believed to represent a "barometer" of systemic endothelial health. Although a recent study [Padilla et al. Exp Biol Med (Maywood) 235: 1287-1291, 2010] in pigs confirmed a strong correlation between brachial and femoral artery endothelial function, it is unclear to what extent brachial artery FMD represents a systemic index of endothelial function in humans. We conducted a retrospective analysis of data from our laboratory to evaluate relationships between the upper (i.e., brachial artery) vs. lower limb (superficial femoral n = 75; popliteal artery n = 32) endothelium-dependent FMD and endothelium-independent glyceryl trinitrate (GTN)-mediated dilation in young, healthy individuals. We also examined the relationship between FMD assessed in both brachial arteries (n = 42). There was no correlation between brachial and superficial femoral artery FMD (r(2) = 0.008; P = 0.46) or between brachial and popliteal artery FMD (r(2) = 0.003; P = 0.78). However, a correlation was observed in FMD between both brachial arteries (r(2) = 0.34; P < 0.001). Brachial and superficial femoral artery GTN were modestly correlated (r(2) = 0.13; P = 0.007), but brachial and popliteal artery GTN responses were not (r(2) = 0.08; P = 0.11). Collectively, these data indicate that conduit artery vasodilator function in the upper limbs (of healthy humans) is not predictive of that in the lower limbs, whereas measurement of FMD in one arm appears to be predictive of FMD in the other. These data do not support the hypothesis that brachial artery FMD in healthy humans represents a systemic index of endothelial function.
肱动脉血流介导的扩张（FMD）是未来心血管疾病的强有力预测因子，被认为是全身内皮健康的“晴雨表”。尽管最近的一项研究[Padilla 等人，实验生物学与医学杂志（梅伍德）235:1287-1291, 2010]在猪身上证实了肱动脉和股动脉内皮功能之间存在很强的相关性，但在多大程度上肱动脉 FMD 代表了人类全身内皮功能的系统指数尚不清楚。我们对实验室数据进行了回顾性分析，以评估上肢（即肱动脉）与下肢（股浅动脉 n=75；腘动脉 n=32）内皮依赖性 FMD 和非内皮依赖性硝化甘油（GTN）介导的扩张之间的关系在年轻健康个体中。我们还检查了在两条肱动脉（n=42）中评估的 FMD 之间的关系。肱动脉和股浅动脉 FMD 之间没有相关性（r²=0.008；P=0.46），肱动脉和腘动脉 FMD 之间也没有相关性（r²=0.003；P=0.78）。然而，在两条肱动脉之间观察到了 FMD 的相关性（r²=0.34；P<0.001）。肱动脉和股浅动脉 GTN 之间存在中度相关性（r²=0.13；P=0.007），但肱动脉和腘动脉 GTN 之间没有相关性（r²=0.08；P=0.11）。总的来说，这些数据表明，健康人上肢的血管舒张功能（传导动脉）不能预测下肢的功能，而一条手臂的 FMD 测量似乎可以预测另一条手臂的 FMD。这些数据不支持肱动脉 FMD 在健康人群中代表全身内皮功能的系统指数的假设。
