Measurements of Arterial Occlusion Pressure Using Hand-Held Devices

Arterial occlusion pressure (AOP) of the brachial artery was measured simultaneously using Doppler ultrasound (US), a hand-held Doppler (HHDOP), and a pulse oximeter (PO) in the dominant (DOM) and nondominant (NDOM) arms of males (n = 21) and females (n = 23) using continuous (CONT) and incremental (INCR) cuff inflation protocols. A mixed-model analysis of variance revealed significant (p < 0.05) overall main effects between AOP measured using a CONT (115.7 +/- 10.9) or INCR (115.0 +/- 11.5) cuff inflation protocol; between AOP measured using US (116.3 +/- 11.2), HHDOP (115.4 +/- 11.2), and PO (114.4 +/- 11.2); and between males (120.7 +/- 10.6) and females (110.5 +/- 9.4). The small overall difference (1.81 +/- 3.3) between US and PO measures of AOP was significant (p < 0.05), but the differences between US and HHDOP and between HHDOP and PO measures of AOP were not significant. There were no overall differences in AOP between the DOM and NDOM arms. Trial-to-trial variance in US measurements of AOP was not significant when using either cuff inflation protocol but was significant when using HHDOP and PO and a CONT cuff inflation protocol. Bland-Altman plots revealed reasonable limits of agreement for both HHDOP and PO measures of AOP. The small differences in US, HHDOP, and PO measurements of AOP when using CONT or INCR cuff inflation protocols are of minimal practical importance. The choice of cuff inflation protocol is one of personal preference. Hand-held Doppler of PO can be used to assess AOP before using blood flow restriction during exercise.