Arterial compliance measurement using a non-invasive laser Doppler measurement system

The aim of this study was to study the elasticity of the arterial wall using a non-invasive laser Doppler measurement system. The elasticity of the arterial wall is described by its compliance factor, which can be determined when both blood pressure and the radial velocity of the arterial wall are known. To measure radial velocity we used a self-mixing interferometer. The compliance factors were measured from six healthy volunteers, whose ages were varied from 21 to 32. Although a single volunteer's compliance factor is presented as an example, this paper treated the volunteers as a group. First, the elastic modulus, which is inversely proportional to the compliance factor, was determined. Then, an exponential curve was fitted into the measured data and a characteristic equation for the elastic modulus of the arterial wail was determined. The elastic modulus was calculated at different pressures and the results were compared to the static incremental modulus of a dog's femoral artery. The results indicate that there is a correlation between human elastic and canine static incremental modulus for blood pressures varying from 60 to 110 mmHg.