There contains so much physiological/pathological information in pulse wave, which can reflect the early changes in cardiovascular function parameters. Therefore, it would be valuable to quantify the information revealed by pulse wave as important reference for cardiovascular diseases. In this review, the relationship between physiological/pathological information in cardiovascular system and pulse wave was described from the viewpoint of pulse wave formation mechanism, and to explain how the non-invasive detection indexes supplied by pulse wave could be applied in clinical use by analyzing the waveforms. Cardiovascular health evaluation index established by physiological/pathological information from cardiovascular system with pulse wave theory was also discussed. The development of non-invasive detection methods for cardiovascular system based on pulse wave theory can contribute to cardiovascular health care and provide important reference for the early detection, early prevention and early treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Besides, the non-invasive detection method can simplify the process of clinical testing and reduce the costs so as to achieve health assessment on cardiovascular diseases timely and reduce the mortality and disability rates.