Objectives: Aortic stiffness, best approached by pulse wave velocity (PWV), is a determinant of health. Among the devices measuring PWV, gold standard are pulse transit time recordings. pOpmetre^® (P^®) measures pulse at finger and toe levels using oximetry clips and adequate algorithm in less than 5 minutes. It showed good agreement against reference techniques, but P^® feasibility and relevance were never tested in a large general population.

Population and methods: From September 2015, 527 Normotensives (43.8±13.6 years) had a standard health check-up at the IPC Center (Paris, France) including finger to toe pulse wave velocity recording with pOpmetre^®, performed by nurses after 10 minutes supine rest permitting ECG and blood pressure measurements (three values averaged). Data were compared to aortic PWV reference values (Eur Heart J, 2010 31, 2338–2350).

Results: Pre-specified factors for measurement failure were variation coefficient within one record> 30%, and PWV extreme outliers: 13 were excluded. BP and PWV were respectively: 121±10/73±7 mmHg 7.64±2.7 m/sec. 231 had optimal BP, 202 normal and 81 high normal BP. PWV increased with age classes from <30 to >70 years. The P^® values fell exactly within the aortic reference ranges for age classes: 6.2±1.2, 7.1±2.1, 7.4±2.2, 8.2±2.8, 10.2±3.6, 9.6±2.6 m/sec.

Conclusion: The simple and quick measurement with pOpmetre^® device can be performed by nurses during a tight time schedule. It provides values within aortic Reference value ranges in normal population. It is a promising substitute to reference techniques for assessing PWV during standard health check-up.