Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2010 Mar 5;12(1):10.
doi: 10.1186/1532-429X-12-10.

Variations in atherosclerosis and remodeling patterns in aorta and carotids

Katsumi Hayashi  1 , Venkatesh Mani, Ajay Nemade, Silvia Aguiar, John E Postley, Valentin Fuster, Zahi A Fayad
Affiliations

Variations in atherosclerosis and remodeling patterns in aorta and carotids

Katsumi Hayashi et al. J Cardiovasc Magn Reson. .

Abstract

Background: Atherosclerosis is a progressive disease that causes vascular remodeling that can be positive or negative. The evolution of arterial wall thickening and changes in lumen size under current "standard of care" in different arterial beds is unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine arterial remodeling and progression/regression of atherosclerosis in aorta and carotid arteries of individuals at risk for atherosclerosis normalized over a 1-year period.

Methods: In this study, 28 patients underwent at least 2 black-blood in vivo cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) scans of aorta and carotids over a one-year period (Mean 17.8 +/- 7.5 months). Clinical risk profiles for atherosclerosis and medications were documented and patients were followed by their referring physicians under current "standard of care" guidelines. Carotid and aortic wall lumen areas were matched across the time-points from cross-sectional images.

Results: The wall area increased by 8.67%, 10.64%, and 13.24% per year (carotid artery, thoracic aorta and abdominal aorta respectively, p < 0.001). The lumen area of the abdominal aorta increased by 4.97% per year (p = 0.002), but the carotid artery and thoracic aorta lumen areas did not change significantly. The use of statin therapy did not change the rate of increase of wall area of carotid artery, thoracic and abdominal aorta, but decreased the rate of change of lumen area of carotid artery (-3.08 +/- 11.34 vs. 0.19 +/- 12.91 p < 0.05).

Conclusions: Results of this study of multiple vascular beds indicated that different vascular locations exhibited varying progression of atherosclerosis and remodeling as monitored by CMR.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Sample carotid images obtained from a patient (Top panels) and Sample thoracic aorta images (Bottom panels).
Figure 2
Figure 2
Sample image analysis tracing of the left carotid artery showing plaque regression between the two points on a 56-year-old patient on statin therapy.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Rosamond W, Flegal K, Furie K, Go A, Greenlund K, Haase N, Hailpern SM, Ho M, Howard V, Kissela B, Kittner S, Lloyd-Jones D, McDermott M, Meigs J, Moy C, Nichol G, O'Donnell C, Roger V, Sorlie P, Steinberger J, Thom T, Wilson M, Hong Y. American Heart Association Statistics Committee and Stroke Statistics Subcommittee. Heart disease and stroke statistics--2008 update: a report from the American Heart Association Statistics Committee and Stroke Statistics Subcommittee. Circulation. 2008;117:e25–146. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.107.187998. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Glagov S. Mechanical stresses on vessels and the non-uniform distribution of atherosclerosis. Med Clin North Am. 1973;57:63–77. - PubMed
    1. Glagov S, Zarins C, Giddens DP, Ku DN. Hemodynamics and atherosclerosis. Insights and perspectives gained from studies of human arteries. Arch Pathol Lab Med. 1988;112:1018–1031. - PubMed
    1. Naghavi M, Libby P, Falk E, Casscells SW, Litovsky S, Rumberger J, Badimon JJ, Stefanadis C, Moreno P, Pasterkamp G. From Vulnerable Plaque to Vulnerable Patient: A Call for New Definitions and Risk Assessment Strategies: Part II. Circulation. 2003;108:1772–1778. doi: 10.1161/01.CIR.0000087481.55887.C9. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Naghavi M, Libby P, Falk E, Casscells SW, Litovsky S, Rumberger J, Badimon JJ, Stefanadis C, Moreno P, Pasterkamp G. From Vulnerable Plaque to Vulnerable Patient: A Call for New Definitions and Risk Assessment Strategies: Part I. Circulation. 2003;108:1664–1672. doi: 10.1161/01.CIR.0000087480.94275.97. - DOI - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances