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Coronary vascular remodeling in association with endothelial dysfunction
A Lerman1, C R Cannan, S H Higano
1Division of Cardiovascular Diseases and Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic and Foundation, Rochester, Minnesota 55905, USA.
Insights
Early coronary artery disease involves vascular remodeling and endothelial dysfunction. This study found that enlarged coronary arteries in patients with abnormal blood flow responses suggest vascular remodeling occurs alongside endothelial dysfunction.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Medicine
- Vascular Biology
- Atherosclerosis Research
Background:
- Vascular remodeling is observed in both early and advanced coronary artery disease.
- The endothelium's role in vascular remodeling and its association with coronary blood flow reserve remains unclear.
- Endothelial dysfunction, characterized by abnormal coronary blood flow in response to acetylcholine, is a hallmark of early coronary atherosclerosis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the hypothesis that coronary vascular remodeling is associated with endothelial dysfunction in the early stages of coronary atherosclerosis.
- To determine if structural changes in coronary arteries correlate with impaired coronary blood flow regulation.
Main Methods:
- Studied 36 patients with normal or mild coronary artery disease.
- Administered acetylcholine into the left anterior descending artery to assess endothelial function.
- Utilized intravascular ultrasound to measure proximal left anterior descending artery diameter and area, indexed to body surface area.
Main Results:
- Patients with abnormal coronary blood flow responses to acetylcholine exhibited significantly larger proximal left anterior descending artery diameters (5.2 vs. 3.9 mm) and areas (19.5 vs. 12.3 mm²) compared to those with normal responses.
- These differences in vessel size remained significant after indexing to body surface area.
- Demonstrated a correlation between impaired endothelial function and increased coronary artery dimensions.
Conclusions:
- Coronary vascular remodeling, specifically the enlargement of proximal coronary arteries, occurs in association with endothelial dysfunction.
- These findings suggest that vascular remodeling is an early adaptive response in the development of coronary artery disease.
- The study provides in vivo evidence in humans linking structural vascular changes to early endothelial dysfunction.
Abstract:
Vascular remodeling has been demonstrated in advanced and early coronary artery disease. Whereas the endothelium may play a role in the adaptive process of vascular remodeling, it is not known if this process occurs in association with changes in coronary blood flow reserve. Early coronary atherosclerosis is characterized by endothelial dysfunction which is manifested by an abnormal coronary blood flow in response to the endothelium-dependent vasodilator acetylcholine. This study was designed to test the hypothesis that coronary vascular remodeling occurs in association with coronary endothelial dysfunction early in the development of coronary atherosclerosis. Thirty-six patients found to have normal coronary angiograms or mild coronary artery disease were studied. Acetylcholine was infused into the left anterior descending artery. Patients were divided into 2 groups based on their coronary blood flow response to acetylcholine. Intravascular ultrasound measurements of the proximal left anterior descending diameter and area were obtained. Vessel diameter and area were measured at the external elastic membrane and indexed to body surface area. Vessel diameter and area were greater in patients with abnormal than normal responses to acetylcholine (5.2 +/- 0.3 mm and 19.5 +/- 0.9 mm2 vs 3.9 +/- 0.3 mm and 12.3 +/- 1.0 mm2; p <0.02, respectively). This difference persisted when measurements were indexed to body surface area. The current study suggests in vivo in humans that coronary vascular remodeling characterized by enlargement of the proximal coronary arteries occurs in association with endothelial dysfunction early in the course of coronary artery disease.