Clinical Equipment

The clinical research section of CCARM employs a suite of innovative, non-invasive, vascular and metabolic assessment devices and analytical equipment. These clinical research tools are housed in a modern state of the art clinical research facility located on the 3rd floor of the Asper Clinical Research Institute located on the grounds of the St-Boniface Hospital. For a comprehensive listing of our clinical equipment, please see table following the features summary.

Metabolic and Vascular Assessment

Dual Energy X-ray Absortiometry (DEXA): The DEXA is the most widely used full body scanner to measure total body tissue/mass composition. The DEXA is used by researchers to help differentiate between one’s total muscle mass and one’s total body fat. Researchers can target specific regions (i.e. trunk vs. arm) or the whole body. The DEXA is an exceptional tool to allow researchers to monitor changes in the participant’s body mass composition (body fat or muscle mass) over time.

AGE Reader (by Diagnoptics): Is a non-invasive device that provides a real time measure of the tissue accumulation of “Advanced Glycation Endproducts” or “AGEs”. The severity of tissue accumulation of AGEs is well accepted as a surrogate marker which can be used in the prediction of cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Using fluorescent technology, the device “reads” the research participant’s skin autofluorescence and gives CCARM Research Investigators the ability to process and analyze the data immediately. The assessment takes only 2 minutes.

APG® Air-Plethysmograph: Is a pneumatic plethysmograph designed for non-invasively measuring venous function and absolute volume changes in the lower extremities. The device provides CCARM Research Investigators with detailed and accurate results of outflow testing for evaluation of chronic obstruction in the legs, deep vein thrombosis and subclavian vein thrombosis as well as quantitatively measure venous reflux, calf muscle pump ejection fraction, and residual volume fraction testing which in turn provide a useful index of severity of venous disease.

EndoPAT-2000 (by Itamar): Using plethysmographic technology, this device gives CCARM Research Investigators a way to non-invasively measure endothelial function. Based on “peripheral arterial tone”, the device measures endothelium-mediated changes in vascular tone which is elicited by a 5 minute occlusion, then release of the brachial artery occlusion creating a “down-stream hyperemic response”. Blood flow immediately following occlusion release causes flow mediated dilatation which is reported as the research participant’s reactive hyperemia index. The test takes 15 minutes.

SphygmoCor Px/Vx System (by AtCor Technologies): Is a device that provides CCARM Research Investigators with a way of non-invasively measuring arterial stiffness and arterial compliance. This device is the gold standard for measuring central blood pressure and large artery stiffness. It provides our researchers with quantifiable results of the research participant’s central blood pressure (through pulse wave analysis), degree of arterial stiffness (augmentation index), degree of systolic after load, degree of large arterial stiffness (through pulse wave velocity), and heart rate variability along with other several other key parameters for assessing myocardial perfusion and ventricular function.

CR-2000 CV Profiler (by Hypertension Diagnostics Inc): Provides our researchers with a non-invasive means of obtaining 15 cardiovascular parameters using one device. The device is used to obtain arterial elasticity, blood pressure waveform, cardiac ejection time & output, and systemic vascular resistance.

HRT-3 Confocal Microscope (by Heidelberg): is a confocal scanning laser ophthalmoscope which can provide 3-D imagery of a research participant’s eye. It is used by CCARM Research Investigators to provide analysis of severity and progression of disease of glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and macular degeneration.

VP-1000 Vascular Screening Device (by Omron/Colin): Is a fast, non-invasive, fully automated device that allows CCARM Scientists to assess a research participant’s ankle brachial index or “ABI” (which is a key indicator of arterial stiffness in the lower extremities and is a value used in determining the diagnosis and severity of peripheral arterial disease or PAD) and also reports on the brachial/ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) – all done simultaneously in 5 minutes.

Comprehensive Listing of Clinical Equipment

The section also utilizes local services located at St. Boniface Hospital including Clinical Chemistry and Haematology and Dual Energy X-Ray Absorption (DEXA).