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Thoracic aortic distensibility and thoracic aortic calcium (from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis [MESA])

Mouaz H Al-Mallah1, Khurram Nasir, Ronit Katz

  • 1Division of Cardiology, Henry Ford Hospital, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, USA. mouaz74@gmail.com

The American Journal of Cardiology
|August 10, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Decreased arterial distensibility, a sign of vessel wall changes, is linked to thoracic aortic calcium (TAC), a marker of atherosclerosis. Increased arterial stiffness is independently associated with higher TAC, regardless of ethnicity or other risk factors.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiovascular Medicine
  • Radiology
  • Vascular Biology

Background:

  • Decreased arterial distensibility signifies early adverse changes in the vessel wall.
  • The relationship between arterial stiffness and thoracic aortic calcium (TAC) remains underexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To test the hypothesis that reduced aortic compliance and increased arterial stiffness are independently associated with increased TAC.
  • To investigate the correlation between aortic distensibility (AD) and TAC in a large, multi-ethnic cohort.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized data from 3,540 Multi-ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis participants.
  • Assessed aortic distensibility (AD) via magnetic resonance imaging.
  • Quantified thoracic aortic calcium (TAC) using cardiac computed tomography and a modified Agatston algorithm.

Main Results:

  • 24% of subjects (861) had detectable TAC.
  • Lower AD was significantly associated with the presence of TAC (p <0.0001).
  • TAC prevalence increased across decreasing quartiles of AD (7% to 42%, p <0.0001).
  • Multivariate analysis confirmed TAC was independently associated with AD after adjusting for covariates.

Conclusions:

  • Increased arterial stiffness is significantly associated with increased thoracic aortic calcium.
  • This association is independent of ethnicity and other traditional atherosclerotic risk factors.
  • Findings highlight the link between vascular structural/functional changes and atherosclerosis markers.

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