Under standard of care, arterial wall area significantly increased by 8.67% in the carotid artery, 10.64% in the thoracic aorta, and 13.24% in the abdominal aorta per year.
Observational (n=28)
No
How do atherosclerosis progression and vascular remodeling patterns vary across different arterial beds in patients at risk for atherosclerosis under standard of care?
Cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging demonstrates that atherosclerosis progression and vascular remodeling occur at varying rates across different arterial beds despite standard of care.
p-value: p=<0.001
BACKGROUND: Atherosclerosis is a progressive disease that causes vascular remodeling that can be positive or negative. The evolution of arterial wall thickening and changes in lumen size under current "standard of care" in different arterial beds is unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine arterial remodeling and progression/regression of atherosclerosis in aorta and carotid arteries of individuals at risk for atherosclerosis normalized over a 1-year period. METHODS: In this study, 28 patients underwent at least 2 black-blood in vivo cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) scans of aorta and carotids over a one-year period (Mean 17.8 +/- 7.5 months). Clinical risk profiles for atherosclerosis and medications were documented and patients were followed by their referring physicians under current "standard of care" guidelines. Carotid and aortic wall lumen areas were matched across the time-points from cross-sectional images. RESULTS: The wall area increased by 8.67%, 10.64%, and 13.24% per year (carotid artery, thoracic aorta and abdominal aorta respectively, p < 0.001). The lumen area of the abdominal aorta increased by 4.97% per year (p = 0.002), but the carotid artery and thoracic aorta lumen areas did not change significantly. The use of statin therapy did not change the rate of increase of wall area of carotid artery, thoracic and abdominal aorta, but decreased the rate of change of lumen area of carotid artery (-3.08 +/- 11.34 vs. 0.19 +/- 12.91 p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Results of this study of multiple vascular beds indicated that different vascular locations exhibited varying progression of atherosclerosis and remodeling as monitored by CMR.
Hayashi et al. (Mon,) conducted a observational in At risk for atherosclerosis (n=28). Standard of care for atherosclerosis risk factors vs. Baseline was evaluated on Annual percentage change in arterial wall area (carotid artery) (p=<0.001). Under standard of care, arterial wall area significantly increased by 8.67% in the carotid artery, 10.64% in the thoracic aorta, and 13.24% in the abdominal aorta per year.