A comparison of correction algorithms to pulse parameters for estimation of arterial stiffness

Over the past few years, a considerable number of studies have focused on estimation of arterial stiffness by using a digital volume pulse (DVP). This can generally be achieved by a linear regression analysis with several pulse parameters. Among various pulse parameters, since time-related pulse parameters, such as reflected wave arrival time, are varied with pulse rate, it can provide incorrectly estimated clinical information. In order to complement this problem, many previous studies suggested the following correction algorithms, which are widely used in ECG analysis: Bazett´s formula, Fridericia´s formula, and linear regression equation. Although these correction algorithms has been applied and tested in the ECG signal, they must be validated in the DVP since they can provide different performance in the DVP. Therefore, we have shown a comparison among commonly used correction algorithms for estimation of arterial stiffness in this paper. In order to compare the performance of the correction algorithms, we have carried out the correlation analysis by using a SPSS tool, which is typically used in statistical analysis. As a result, we can notice that it is reasonable to use both the Bazett´s formula and linear regression equation for estimation of arterial stiffness by using time-related pulse parameters extracted from the DVP.