The left ventricular ejection time fraction affects the spectrum of the arterial pulse wave: LVETF affects the spectrum of arterial pulse wave

The left ventricular ejection time (LVET) and heart rate are two independent parameters which have been highly studied for aging and cardiovascular diseases. To reduce the effect caused by the individual specificities of subjects, we defined a new dimensionless parameter: the left ventricular ejection time fraction (LVETF= LVET/period of heart beat), and tube simulations were performed to investigate its possible effects on the arterial pulse wave. The pulsatile blood input from the left ventricle was simulated by a pulsatile water input generated by a stepper motor with a controllable frequency and ejection time. We found that the harmonic components of the induced pressure waves altered as the fraction of the water ejection duration changed. According to our previous studies, the harmonic components of the arterial pressure pulse can reflect the condition of individual subjects, we thus conclude that LVETF is an important factor to study the effect of ventricular output on arterial systems.