Allometric scaling of endothelium-dependent vasodilation: Brachial artery flow-mediated dilation coming of age?

摘要

Current efforts at reducing the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) extend beyond management of end-stage sequelae, to early recognition of 'intermediate' phenotypes. Vascular endothelial dysfunction is an early and convergent step in atherosclerosis, and its presence implies disruption of a multitude of endothelium-dependent physiologic processes. Eventually, dysfunctional endothelial cells promote a proinflammatory and procoagulatory vascular milieu that hastens clinical onset and progression of disease. As these abnormalities precede morphologic changes, assessment of endothelial function can therefore gauge the health of the vasculature, explore underlying mechanisms of CVD, and serve as a clinical endpoint.