Systematic review and meta-analysis of the prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysm in Asian populations

Abstract

Objective: The prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) is well reported in Western countries and AAA screening programs are well-established. However, although individual studies have reported that the prevalence of AAAs is lower in Asian populations, high-quality data on the prevalence of AAA in Asians are relative lacking. The present study aimed to systematically synthesize the data available in the literature and report the prevalence of AAAs in Asians.

Methods: An electronic search was performed using two major databases (PubMed and EMBASE) with no limitations imposed on the year of publication. The review conformed to the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines. Studies that reported the prevalence of AAAs in Asians were selected, and the population characteristics, AAA definition, method of screening, target population, and total number of patients screened were recorded.

Results: Our search yielded 157 unique articles. After a full-text review, 17 articles were included in the present study. All 17 studies of fair quality. The overall AAA prevalence was 1.30% (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.01%-1.59%) in Asian populations. The prevalence of AAAs was 2.56% (95% CI, 1.81%-3.31%) in Asian populations selected for cardiovascular risk factors and 0.61% (95% CI, 0.37%-0.85%) in Asian populations not selected for cardiovascular risk factors.

Conclusions: The prevalence of AAAs in the general Asian population is low. However, the prevalence in Asian populations selected for cardiovascular risk factors approaches the prevalence of AAAs in Western populations. As such, screening for AAAs in carefully selected Asian male populations with cardiovascular risk factors could potentially yield benefits. Opportunistic screening for AAAs during ultrasound examination of the abdomen or transthoracic echocardiography for other indications could also be considered. However, further studies are needed to evaluate the potential benefits of screening for AAAs in carefully selected Asian populations.

Keywords: Abdominal aortic aneurysm; Asian; Epidemiology; Prevalence; Screening.