Associations Between Cardio-Ankle Vascular Index and Aortic Structure and Sclerosis Using Multidetector Computed...

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Imaging and Diagnostics
• Vascular Biology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) is a standard measure of arterial stiffness but is influenced by blood pressure.
• Cardio-ankle vascular index (CAVI) was developed to provide a blood pressure-independent measure of arterial stiffness.
• Evaluating thoracic aortic atherosclerosis using non-invasive methods is crucial for cardiovascular risk assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between CAVI and aortic atherosclerosis or structure.
• To determine if CAVI can serve as a surrogate marker for thoracic aortic changes.

Main Methods:

• A cohort of 98 patients (49 with and 49 without coronary artery disease) was studied.
• Multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) was used to assess aortic lumen and vessel diameters and wall thickness.
• CAVI was measured within 3 days prior to MDCT imaging.

Main Results:

• CAVI significantly correlated with thoracic descending aorta vessel diameter (r = .453) and wall thickness (r = .387).
• CAVI was identified as an independent predictor of descending aortic wall thickness via multiple stepwise regression analysis.
• Aortic vessel diameter was found to be dependent on age, body surface area, and diastolic blood pressure.

Conclusions:

• CAVI is a valuable and simple index for assessing thoracic aortic atherosclerosis.
• CAVI may offer a non-invasive method to evaluate structural changes in the thoracic aorta.