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Updated: Jun 29, 2025
Optical Coherence Tomography Based Biomechanical Fluid-Structure Interaction Analysis of Coronary Atherosclerosis Progression
Published on: January 15, 2022
[Multidistrict atherosclerotic disease: epidemiological and clinical framework]
Stefania Angela Di Fusco1, Maurizio Giuseppe Abrignani2, Antonio Francesco Amico3
1U.O.C. Cardiologia Clinica e Riabilitativa, Presidio Ospedaliero San Filippo Neri - ASL Roma 1, Roma.
Insights
Atherosclerosis affects arteries beyond the heart, increasing cardiovascular risks. This review details peripheral arterial disease (PAD) prevalence, diagnosis, and medical treatment in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD).
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Vascular Medicine
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Atherosclerosis is a systemic arterial disease with significant cardiovascular implications.
- Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a primary focus, but involvement of other arterial beds is increasingly recognized.
- Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) traditionally refers to lower limb disease but is redefined here to include all non-coronary, non-aortic arterial atherosclerosis.
Approach:
- This review synthesizes updated epidemiological data on PAD prevalence and its prognostic impact.
- It focuses on diagnostic strategies and pharmacological management of PAD.
- Surgical and interventional treatments are explicitly excluded from this review's scope.
Key Points:
- PAD significantly increases the risk of adverse cardiovascular events, particularly in patients with existing CAD.
- Understanding PAD prevalence and its association with CAD is crucial for comprehensive patient risk assessment.
- Appropriate diagnostic frameworks and evidence-based pharmacological therapies are essential for managing PAD.
Conclusions:
- PAD, encompassing non-coronary and non-aortic atherosclerosis, is a critical component of systemic atherosclerotic disease.
- Recognizing the prevalence and prognostic significance of PAD in CAD patients is vital for clinical practice.
- This review provides a framework for diagnosis and medical management, emphasizing the link between PAD and overall cardiovascular risk.
Abstract:
Atherosclerosis is a systemic disease that can involve different arterial districts. Traditionally, the focus of cardiologists has been on the diagnosis and treatment of atherosclerotic coronary artery disease (CAD). However, atherosclerosis localization in other districts is increasingly common and is associated with an increased risk of CAD and, more generally, of adverse cardiovascular events. Although the term peripheral arterial disease (PAD) commonly refers to the localization of atherosclerotic disease in the arterial districts of the lower limbs, in this document, in accordance with the European Society of Cardiology guidelines, the term PAD will be used for all the locations of atherosclerotic disease excluding coronary and aortic ones. The aim of this review is to report updated data on PAD epidemiology, with particular attention to the prevalence and its prognostic impact on patients with CAD. Furthermore, the key points for an appropriate diagnostic framework and a correct pharmacological therapeutic approach are summarized, while surgical/interventional treatment goes beyond the scope of this review.
