A larger low‐flow‐mediated constrictor response is associated with augmented flow‐mediated dilation in the popliteal artery

Abstract

Impaired endothelial function is a precursor for the development of arterial diseases (Vanhoutte et al., 2009). Endothelial-dependent dilation is frequently determined via the flow-mediated dilation (FMD) technique, which quantifies the magnitude of vasodilation in response to a reactive hyperaemia provoked by a brief period of distal cuff occlusion (Thijssen et al., 2019). Both upper-(ie brachial) and lower-limb (ie superficial femoral artery) FMD responses provide an index of nitric oxide (NO) biovailability (Green et al., 2014;Kooijman et al., 2008), with larger dilation indicative of a healthier endothelium. A less appreciated and more variable endothelial-dependent