Changes of Arterial stiffness during flow-mediated dilation procedure

Endothelial dysfunction has been linked to the incapability of arteries to release Nitric Oxide (NO) upon relevant stimulus, thus decreasing their ability to dilate properly. This research investigates the effect of arterial occlusion to Arterial stiffness related parameters. In this research we used flow-mediated dilation (FMD) test with Photo Plethysmograph (PPG) signal processing to acquire quantifiable dilatation data. Fifteen Subjects aged 21-36 volunteered to take part in the experiment. Various parameters including but not limited to Stiffness Index and Augmentation Index were calculated from the PPG signal and observed. Results show that the occlusion may indeed affect the subjects´ parameters, thus may inform their endothelial condition.