Risk assessment indicators and brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity to predict atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease

Brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (baPWV) is used for predicting the severity of vascular damage and prognosis of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) in people with hypertension and diabetes mellitus. This correlation study aimed to compare the baPWV with other risk indicators for identification of subclinical vascular disease for primary prevention and to determine the clinical utility of baPWV-guided therapy in improving prognosis in high-risk subjects. We included 4881 subjects who underwent voluntary health examination at Mackay Memorial Hospital, Taiwan between 2014 and 2019. Participants were categorized into the low-risk (<5%), borderline-risk (5%-7.4%), intermediate-risk (7.5%-19.9%), and high-risk (≥20%) groups based on the 10-year risk for ASCVD. The predictive risk criteria, that is, the metabolic syndrome score, Framingham Risk Score, estimated glomerular filtration rate, and baPWV were compared among these groups. The chief cause of induced responses and the relationships between parameters were identified using principal component analysis. The participants' ages, body mass index, systolic, diastolic blood pressure, triglycerides, fasting glucose, hemoglobin A1c, creatinine, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio, metabolic syndrome, Framingham Risk Score, and age-related arterial stiffness (vascular age) increased significantly from the low-risk to high-risk groups (P < .001). The mean estimated glomerular filtration rate decreased significantly from the low- to high-risk groups (P < .001). The predicted vascular age and actual age differed significantly between the intermediate- and high-risk groups (P < .001). High-density lipoprotein levels plummeted significantly among the 4 groups (P < .001). The right and left baPWV and ankle brachial index differed significantly among the 4 groups (all P < .001) and increased from the low-risk to high-risk groups (P < .001). Carotid Doppler ultrasonography revealed a significant increase in plaque formation (23.5%, 35.4%, 46.3%, and 61.5% for the low-, borderline-, intermediate, and high-risk groups, respectively). The total explanatory variation was 61.9% for 2 principal variation factors (baPWV, 36.8% and creatinine, 25.1%). The vascular age predicted using baPWV greatly exceeded the chronological age. Plaque formation was significant even in the low-risk group, and its frequency increased with the predicted ASCVD risk. Risk indicators and baPWV are useful predictors of ASCVD, which in conjunction with conventional pharmacotherapy could be useful for primary prevention of plaque formation in subjects with cardiovascular comorbidities.