Evolution of ambulatory measurement of blood pressure and parameters of arterial stiffness over a 1-year period in patients with systemic sclerosis: ERAMS study

Patients with systemic sclerosis commonly exhibit increased arterial stiffness, which may be predictive of the overall severity of the disease. The aim of the present study was to check the stability of parameters of arterial stiffness after 1 year in this population. ERAMS is a French multicentric prospective study designed to identify a link between arterial distensibility and outcome in 100 patients with systemic sclerosis. Arterial distensibility was evaluated by 24-h ambulatory monitoring of QKD interval along with blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) (four measurements/hour). The index QKD(100-60) which is linked to aortic distensibility, was calculated automatically. QKD(100-60) is the value of QKD (which depends on pulse wave velocity) for 100 mm Hg sBP and 60 bpm HR. The reproducibility of QKD(100-60) was assessed on the first patients to be followed up for a complete year. So far the 100 patients have been recruited from 14 participating centres and 48 were re-evaluated after 1 year. QKD(100-60) was highly reproducible: 201 +/- 6 vs 202 +/- 18 msec, standard deviation of difference = 13 msec. In conclusion: determination of QKD(100-60) to assess arterial stiffness gives stable results over 1 year in patients with systemic sclerosis.