Development of a FBG probe for non-invasive carotid pulse waveform assessment

One of the early predictors of cardiovascular diseases, with growing interest, is the arterial stiffness which is typically evaluated through the velocity and morphology of the arterial pressure wave. In each cardiac cycle the heart generates a pressure wave which propagates through the arterial tree. Along its path, the pressure wave interacts with the arterial walls and, consequently, the morphology of a local arterial pressure wave can be assessed by the arterial distention movement. Due to its superficiality, proximity of the heart and high probability of atherosclerosis development, the carotid artery has particular interest to be monitored. In this work, the development of a non-invasive fibre Bragg grating (FBG) probe for the acquisition of the arterial distention wave is presented. Comparing to traditional methods, optical FBG based sensors can offer many advantages, namely, compactness, immunity to electromagnetic interference, high sensitivity, low noise and immunity to light source intensity due to its codification in the wavelength domain. The arterial movements induce strain on a uniform FBG, with the arterial distention pattern. The carotid pulse wave was successful accessed in young human carotid artery, with an acquisition rate of 950 Hz, allowing a clear distinction of the carotid pulse identification points.