Pulse wave velocity recordings in a family with ecchymotic Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.

Pulse Wave Velocity (P.W.V.) is recorded pneumatically in 27 members of a large family with ecchymotic Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and compared to registrations in 216 normal subjects. Five relatives, ranging from 3 to 50 years of age, are found to have lowered P.W.V., indicating an increased distensibility of the arterial wall. This might be due to a collagen type III deficiency.