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(Hypertension. 2007;49:225.)
© 2007 American Heart Association, Inc.

Original Articles

Maternal and Neonatal Influences on, and Reproducibility of, Neonatal Aortic Pulse Wave Velocity

Abir Koudsi; John Oldroyd; Patrick McElduff; Moulinath Banerjee; Avni Vyas; J. Kennedy Cruickshank

From the Clinical Epidemiology and Cardiovascular Medicine Group (A.K., J.O., M.B., V.A., J.K.C.), Division of Cardiovascular and Endocrine Sciences, University Department of Medicine, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Manchester, United Kingdom; and Evidence for Population Health Unit (P.M.), University of Manchester, Medical School, Manchester, United Kingdom.

Correspondence to J. Kennedy Cruickshank, Division of Cardiovascular and Endocrine Sciences, Core Technology Facility (3rd Floor), University of Manchester, 46 Grafton St, Manchester M13 9NT, United Kingdom. E-mail clinep{at}manchester.ac.uk

Aortic pulse wave velocity (aPWV), a noninvasive measure of vascular stiffness, is an independent predictor of cardiovascular disease both before and in overt vascular disease. Its characteristics in early life and its relationship to maternal factors have hardly been studied. To test the hypothesis that infant aPWV was positively related to maternal anthropometry and blood pressure (BP) at 28 weeks gestation, after adjusting for neonatal anthropometry and BP, 148 babies born in Manchester were measured 1 to 3 days after birth. A high reproducibility of aPWV, assessed in 30 babies within 3 days of birth, was found with a mean difference between occasions of –0.04 m/s (95% CI: –0.08 to 0.16 m/s). Contrary to our hypothesis, a significant inverse relation was found between neonatal aPWV (mean: 4.6 m/s) and maternal systolic BP (mean: 108.9 mm Hg; r=–0.57; 95% CI: –0.67 to –0.45) but not maternal height nor weight. Neonatal aPWV was positively correlated with birth length, birth weight, and systolic BP. In multiple regression, neonatal aPWV remained significantly inversely associated with maternal systolic BP (adjusted ß coefficient: –0.032; 95% CI: –0.040 to –0.024; P<0.001), after adjustment for maternal age, birth weight, length, and neonatal BP (all independently and positively related to aPWV) and for gestational age, maternal weight, and height (unrelated). These results suggest that infant aPWV may be a useful index of infant vascular status, is less disturbing to measure than infant BP, and is sensitive to the gestational environment marked by maternal BP.

Key Words: aortic pulse wave velocity • neonatal • pregnancy • maternal blood pressure • birthweight • reproducibility