A Noninvasive Sonographic Study of Multisite Atherosclerosis in an Elderly Chinese Population

A sonographic study was conducted to determine the prevalence of atherosclerosis across multiple arterial beds in an elderly Chinese population and to examine relationships between detected atherosclerosis and traditional risk factors.

A total of 197 participants underwent sonography of the abdominal aorta and bilateral carotid, femoral, and lower limb arteries. Images were reviewed to determine the presence or absence of plaques in each artery. Plaque thickness was measured as the indicator of plaque burden. Plaque prevalence was estimated per site and correlated with age, sex, and the Framingham Risk Score (FRS). Plaque frequency and thickness were compared between different arterial beds.

Of the 197 participants (54% female; age range, 58-86 years), 90% had plaques present in at least 1 artery, and 55% had plaques present in at least 4 arteries. The most common sites for plaques were the carotid arteries (80%), followed by the lower limb arteries (59%), femoral arteries (57%), and abdominal aorta (37%). Plaque prevalence in each arterial bed except the abdominal aorta was significantly associated with male participants (P < .05), increasing age (P < .003) and FRS (P < .04). Male participants were more likely to have carotid (P = .04), femoral (P = .045), and lower limb (P = .006) plaques than female participants, but there was no significant difference in aortic plaque prevalence between male and female participants (P = .9).

Plaque prevalence increased significantly in the carotid and peripheral arteries with increasing FRS. These findings should be considered for designing screening programs for stroke and heart attack prevention.