RELIABILITY OF POPLITEAL ARTERY FLOW-MEDIATED DILATION IN THE SEATED POSITION
Flow-mediated dilation (FMD) is a noninvasive measure of endothelial function used to assess cardiovascular risks. The popliteal artery is commonly used for FMD measurement in different body positions, which may impact its reliability. This study aimed to examine the reliability of popliteal artery FMD in the seated position, as no previous studies have examined this. Popliteal artery FMD was measured in 20 healthy adults across two visits in seated and prone positions to assess visit-to-visit reliability, with two measurements taken for each body position at each visit for trial-retrial reliability. %FMD was calculated as the percent change from baseline diameter to peak diameter. The reliability of FMD was assessed via intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Popliteal artery %FMD shows moderate-to-good reliability in the seated position (ICC: 0.67 to 0.89) and poor-to-moderate reliability in the prone position (ICC: 0.25 to 0.74) within and between visits. There were no significant differences in baseline diameter or minimum diameter between body positions, visits, or trials (p>0.05). %FMD and peak diameter following cuff deflation demonstrated no significant difference between body positions (p>0.05). Popliteal artery FMD demonstrates good reliability in the seated position, supporting the development of a standardized measurement protocol.INTRODUCTION
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