Patent ID: 6666827
Filing Date: 2003-12-23
Classification: A61B

Abstract:
An apparatus for evaluating arteriosclerosis of a living subject, comprising:a pulse-wave detecting device which detects a pulse wave from each of a first portion and a second portion of the subject, each of the respective pulse waves detected from the first and second portions containing an incident-wave component; an augmentation-index determining means for determining, based on the pulse wave detected from the first portion by the pulse-wave detecting device, a first augmentation index indicative of a degree of augmentation of an amplitude of the pulse wave detected from the first portion, from an amplitude of the incident-wave component of the pulse wave detected from the first portion, and determining, based on the pulse wave detected from the second portion by the pulse-wave detecting device, a second augmentation index indicative of a degree of augmentation of an amplitude of the pulse wave detected from the second portion, from an amplitude of the incident-wave component of the pulse wave detected from the second portion; and an arteriosclerosis evaluating means for evaluating the arteriosclerosis of the subject, based on a comparison of the first and second augmentation indexes determined by the augmentation-index determining means.