Correlation between aortic pulse wave velocity and norepinephrine, epinephrine, aldosterone and plasma renin activity in very elderly subjects and in patients with congestive heart failure

The expression of cardiovascular disease in older patients results from the interaction between age-related changes and the disease process itself. It is still unclear whether the physiologic and pathophysiologic changes that occur with advanced age accelerate or compound the factors responsible for congestive heart failure (CHF). Whether, and to what extent, arterial compliance is altered in CHF in the elderly is not clear. It is also unknown whether the plasma levels of neurohumoral factors in the healthy elderly and in CHF patients are associated with changes in arterial compliance. The aim of this study was to evaluate the aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) in the aorta of elderly healthy subjects and CHF patients, and establish the correlation between PWV and plasma levels of norepinephrine, epinephrine, aldosterone, and renin activity. The study group consisted of 63 females aged 70-100 years (mean, 82 years) with CHF, and 15 age-matched healthy women. Aortic PWV in patients with heart failure did not differ significantly from figures in the age-matched healthy group (12.42 m/sec vs 11.86 m/sec). No statistically significant correlations were found between plasma levels of norepinephrine, epinephrine, aldosterone and renin activity, and aortic compliance measured as PWV. These results suggest that age-associated arterial stiffening is a predominant factor in the development of reduced arterial compliance in elderly patients with CHF.