Which sign involves a femoral artery bruit heard with compression of the artery and is associated with aortic regurgitation?

Which sign involves a femoral artery bruit heard with compression of the artery and is associated with aortic regurgitation?

• A. Duroziez's sign
• B. De Musset sign
• C. Müller's sign
• D. Traube sign

Answer: (A)

Duroziez sign demonstrates the turbulent flow that AR creates in peripheral arteries. In a patient with aortic regurgitation, the pulse pressure is wide and blood flows back into the left ventricle during diastole, generating high-velocity flow in the arteries. When you gently compress the femoral artery, you partially occlude it, and the combination of ongoing diastolic flow with this partial compression produces a bruit that can be heard as a systolic–diastolic murmur over the femoral artery. This specific finding reflects the abnormal runoff and high stroke volume characteristic of AR, making it the best choice among peripheral signs of AR. Other signs listed are different AR manifestations and don’t involve this compression-provoked femoral bruit (for example, head bobbing with each beat; uvula pulsations; or pistol-shot sounds over peripheral vessels), so they don’t fit the mechanism described here.

Duroziez sign demonstrates the turbulent flow that AR creates in peripheral arteries. In a patient with aortic regurgitation, the pulse pressure is wide and blood flows back into the left ventricle during diastole, generating high-velocity flow in the arteries. When you gently compress the femoral artery, you partially occlude it, and the combination of ongoing diastolic flow with this partial compression produces a bruit that can be heard as a systolic–diastolic murmur over the femoral artery. This specific finding reflects the abnormal runoff and high stroke volume characteristic of AR, making it the best choice among peripheral signs of AR.

Other signs listed are different AR manifestations and don’t involve this compression-provoked femoral bruit (for example, head bobbing with each beat; uvula pulsations; or pistol-shot sounds over peripheral vessels), so they don’t fit the mechanism described here.