Pulse Wave Imaging (PWI) of the human carotid artery: An in vivo feasibility study

Noninvasive measurement of the pulse wave velocity (PWV) is of high clinical importance. Pulse Wave Imaging (PWI) has been previously developed by our group to visualize the propagation of the pulse wave and to estimate the regional PWV. The objective of this study was to determine the feasibility of PWI in the human carotid artery in vivo. The left common carotid artery of 8 healthy human subjects (27 ± 4 y.o.) was scanned in a long-axis view. The beam density of the 10 MHz linear array was equal to 16 beams so as to increase the frame rate to 1127 Hz for an imaging depth of 25 mm and width of 38 mm. The RF signals were acquired to estimate the velocity of the arterial wall using a 1D cross-correlation technique. Sequential wall velocity frames depicted the propagation of the pulse wave in the carotid artery within the field of view. Regional PWV was estimated from the spatiotemporal variation of the wall velocities and ranged from 4.0 to 5.2 m/s, in agreement with findings in the literature. PWI was thus proven feasible in the human carotid artery.