Inter-day reliability of Finapres® cardiovascular measurements during rest and exercise

This study evaluated the inter-day test re-test reliability of the Finapres® finger pulse pressure measuring device during rest and exercise. Eight male participants visited the laboratory twice for evaluation of the inter-day reliability of the Finapres® finger-pulse pressure device to measure: heart rate (HR), stroke volume (SV), cardiac output (Q ̇) and mean arterial pressure (MAP) at rest, and treadmill walking at 3 km/h on 1 % and 5 % inclines. There were no systematic biases for any of the variables between days. The coefficient of variation (CV%) and 95% Limits of Agreement (95% LoA) was smallest for MAP (CV% = 1.6-3.2 %; LoA total error = 4.6 – 12 mmHg) and HR (CV% = 3.2-3.9 %; LoA total error = 6.8 – 11.9 b/min), increasing with exercise intensity (gradient). The pattern of error was different for Q ̇, with decreasing CV% (4.8 – 3.8 %) and LoA (4.2 – 5.7 L/min) from rest to 5 % gradient, with the larger errors occurring for resting SV (CV = 7.4 %; LoA total error = 21.5 ml). The device measures MAP and HR reliably between days; however, error increases at higher intensities. The measurement of SV is less reliable, probably owing to underlying algorithmic assumptions.