Pulse wave velocity in my opinion is a very good measure of vascular dysfunction.  Pulse wave velocity measurement using echocardiography is a novel approach and should be tried.  However, the concept is to measure the transmittance of wave from the pulse wave to the aorta and back to pulse. Although a novel concept but  How would you measure the pulse wave using the echocardiography. 

Omer

Pulse wave Doppler although sounds quite likely related to measurement of pulse wave velocity is not at all so.....PW Doppler measures the velocity of low velocity objects like tissue, while the concept of Pulse wave velocity is based on measuring the velocity of Pressure pulse travelling through the arterial wall....and hence a marker of arterial stiffness. The former cannot be used to measure pulse wave velocity, as the latter is a high speed object (pressure pulse) unlike tissue velocity whose magnitudes are much lower.

It is possible to estimate wave speed (local pulse wave velocity) with echocardiography. Measure maximum minus minimum diameter via Bmode or Mmode and systolic/diastolic pressure (P) with a cuff, then use the Bramwell-Hill equation.  PWV = sqrt( [A / blood density] x [delta P / delta A ] ), where A is area estimated from diameter.  One source of inaccuracy is if pressure is not measured at the same location.  

PWV between two vascular points of interest can be calculated by looking at the distance b/w the two and dividing it by transit time. Transit time (TT) by echo can be computed from R wave (ECG) and onset of PWV Doppler from proximal point and then separately from distal. TT can be appraised by subtracting the (R wave to PWV doppler onset at Distal point) to (R wave to PWV onset to proximal point). Carotid femoral or Ascending to Descending aorta can be used to enumerate the PWV b/w these two points.

Hi Vladslavs

PWV with ECO, in my opinion is concept very important for hemodynamics research, but yet isn't method practical.

There is other methodologies in studying through Biomedical Engineering, capturing hemodynamics signals and treating datas with softwares specifics.

This methodologies are more cheap, fast and follow idea initial of the "Complior", for study the Atherosclerosis.

If you intend to study located arterials problems , I think that is better to use ECO.

Yes we do but we prefer to use the impedance technique for PWV measurement. It is easy to use, fully automatic and operator-independent.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12558611

https://tampub.uta.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/99556/978-952-03-0124-8.pdf?sequence=1