Association between the ambulatory arterial stiffness index and the SCORE-derived vascular age in individuals without cardiovascular disease

BACKGROUND: The ambulatory arterial stiffness index (AASI), derived from ambulatory blood pressuremonitoring, functions as a straightforward surrogate marker for arterial stiffness. Vascular age,calculated utilizing the SCORE (Systematic COronary Risk Evaluation) Project, has gained increasingprominence and accessibility as a tool for conveying cardiovascular (CV) risk and is progressivelyrecognized as a surrogate marker for vascular biological aging. AIMS: Our aim was to assess the association between the AASI and the SCORE-derived vascular agein individuals without established CV disease. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 276 patients (53.6% women) aged 40-65 years without CV,cerebrovascular disease, or diabetes mellitus were evaluated. The AASI was calculated from 24-hourambulatory blood pressure monitoring data, and vascular age was estimated using SCORE charts. Thestrength and independence of the association between the AASI and vascular age were evaluatedusing Pearson's correlation and multivariable linear regression analyses. RESULTS: The mean vascular age was 59.7 years and the mean AASI was 0.39. The AASI was significantlyassociated with vascular age (r = 0.529; P <0.001). In the multivariable analysis, a 0.1-unit increasein the AASI corresponded to a 0.992-year increase in vascular age (P = 0.015), independent of age,metabolic syndrome, and left ventricular mass. CONCLUSIONS: The AASI is significantly associated with the SCORE-derived vascular age, highlightingits potential utility as a simple, non-invasive indicator of vascular biological aging and a valuabletool for early CV risk stratification in outpatient settings.