"The speed and magnitude of temperature recovery is a measure of vascular reactivity," Kleis said. "The greater the rebound, the more reactive and healthy the artery. We helped quantify this with our models. A lower or weaker return of temperature signifies a problem that should prompt consultation with a cardiologist."

"Cardiovascular disease is the most lethal disease in the United States and other developed countries, but one important aspect of it is that if it's caught at an early stage, then it's treatable," Metcalfe said. "You can actually prevent its progression by modifying your lifestyle to include a more healthy diet and exercise. In some cases, you can actually reverse it."

VENDYS is designed to be complimentary to other cardiovascular tests, but researchers are hopeful it can be more widely used to regularly monitor cardiovascular fitness. More specifically, for those known to be affected by the disease who are trying to stop its further progression through things such as diet and exercise, it could be a risk-free indicator of how they are doing. Additionally, Endothelix is working on ways to make the device portable.

"You don't want to get an X-ray scan every month - that involves too much radiation exposure," Metcalfe said. "But something like this could be used to help track progress and see if you are indeed improving. This kind of feedback could really be valuable."

Source: University of Houston