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Does brucellosis cause arterial stiffness and ventricular remodelling through inflammation?
Acta Cardiologica
|July 8, 2015
Summary
Brucellosis patients showed impaired aortic elasticity and increased epicardial fat thickness (EFT), linked to inflammation. Myocardial performance remained unaffected, suggesting cardiovascular risks beyond traditional markers.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Infectious Diseases
- Vascular Biology
Background:
- Brucella infection can cause endothelial dysfunction and accelerate atherosclerosis due to chronic inflammation.
- Epicardial fat thickness (EFT) is a non-invasive marker for predicting coronary artery disease (CAD).
- Past brucellosis infection may impact cardiovascular health through inflammation and endothelial dysfunction.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess myocardial performance in patients with a history of brucellosis.
- To evaluate arterial stiffness and EFT in individuals with prior brucellosis infection.
- To investigate the correlation between brucellosis, inflammation, and cardiovascular parameters.
Main Methods:
- A comparative study involving 27 brucellosis patients and 26 healthy controls.
- Transthoracic echocardiography with Doppler and tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) was employed.
- Measurements included epicardial fat thickness (EFT), aortic stiffness index (AoSI), aortic distensibility (AoD), and aortic elastic modulus (AoEM).
Main Results:
- Brucellosis patients exhibited significantly increased hs-CRP, AoSI, AoEM, and EFT compared to controls.
- A significant decrease in aortic strain and AoD was observed in brucellosis patients.
- No significant difference in left ventricular myocardial performance index (MPI) was found between groups.
Conclusions:
- Brucellosis is associated with impaired aortic elasticity and increased EFT, independent of myocardial performance.
- These vascular changes in brucellosis patients correlate significantly with markers of inflammation.
- Findings suggest brucellosis may pose long-term cardiovascular risks, highlighting the need for monitoring arterial health.
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