Arterial waveform: Peripheral vs. Central

As the arterial pressure wave travels from the central aorta to the periphery, the arterial upstroke becomes steeper, the systolic peak becomes higher, the dicrotic notch appears later, the diastolic wave becomes more prominent, and end-diastolic pressure becomes lower. Thus, when compared with central aortic pressure, peripheral arterial waveforms have higher systolic pressure, lower diastolic pressure, and wider pulse pressure. Furthermore, there is a delay in arrival of the pressure pulse at peripheral sites, so the systolic pressure upstroke begins approximately 60 msec later in the radial artery than in the aorta. Despite morphologic and temporal differences between peripheral and central arterial waveforms, MAP in the aorta is just slightly greater than MAP in the radial artery.