PATHOGENETIC SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STIFFNESS INDEX AND AUGMENTATION INDEX IN ARTERIAL HYPERTENSION IN ELDERLY AND SENILE WOMEN IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF CARDIOVASCULAR PATHOLOGY AND GERIATRIC SYNDROMES
Actually: This article discusses the stiffnеss оf the vascular wall and the augmеntation indех as new predictors of cardiovascular system damage in arterial hypertension in elderly and senile women; it shows the value of the stiffness index and the augmentation index in the development of geriatric syndromes and proves the relationship between the indicators identified as a result of the photoplethysmographic method, namely, the stiffness of the vascular wall, the augmentation index and arterial hypertension, microcirculation disorders in the development of geriatric syndromes. The aim of the study: to consider the stiffness of the vascular wall and the augmentation index as new predictors of the cardiovascular system damage in arterial hypertension in elderly and senile women; to prove their importance in the development of geriatric syndromes. Materials and methods. The object of the clinical study - 148 women aged 45 to 89 years old. The comparison group included 30 middle-aged women without cardiovascular diseases. All patients gave informed consent to the examination. In the examined women, the stiffness of the vascular wall and the augmentation index were determined using the AngioScan-01P device, the walking distance, walking speed and power during the test with a six-minute walk, the percentage of patients with arterial hypertension with senile asthenia using the "Age is not a hindrance" scale. Research result. Significant differences in the stiffness index and augmentation index were obtained between middle-aged patients with arterial hypertension and those without this disease. Contour analysis of the stiffness of the vascular wall in patients of different ages showed that in patients with arterial hypertension with the age , the stiffness of the vascular wall increases (8.29±0.17%), as a result the augmentation index increases (24.17±2.13%). According to the results of the test with a six-minute walk, the examined groups showed differences in walking distance, a sharp decrease in walking speed (0.59±0.02 m/s) with the age, which indicates the presence of geriatric sarcopenia syndrome, the produced power decreases with a decrease in the mass and strength of skeletal muscles. The percentage of AH patients with senile asthenia significantly increases (86.7%) during conducting the survey on the "Age is not a hindrance" scale. Conclusion. An increase of the stiffness index with the age leads not only to degenerative changes of blood vessels of different calibers, but it also leads to a violation of metabolic processes in the tissues, resulting in both the development of cardiovascular diseases and the development of geriatric syndromes.