title: Carotid intima-media wall thickness in elderly women with and without atherosclerosis of the abdominal aorta.
abstract: In the present study the association was evaluated between non-invasively assessed atherosclerosis of the abdominal aorta and ultrasonographically measured intima-media wall thickness of the common carotid arteries in a population-based study of 41 elderly women. Atherosclerosis of the abdominal aorta was assessed in 1985 using a lateral X-ray of the lumbar spine, on which the presence of calcified deposits was determined. The carotid arteries were ultrasonographically evaluated in 1990 for presence of atherosclerotic plaques and intima-media wall thickness of the distal common carotid was measured off line using dedicated software. The age-adjusted mean intima-media wall thickness of the right common carotid artery was significantly higher in subjects with calcified deposits in the aorta (n = 16) compared with those without deposits (n = 25) with a mean difference of 0.15 mm (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.03, 0.26). For the left side similar results were observed. Mean common carotid intima-media wall thickness, ((left+right)/2), differed significantly across groups with a mean difference of 0.11 mm (95% CI 0.01, 021). Additional adjustment for differences across groups in body mass index, serum cholesterol, hypertension and smoking did not change the magnitude of the observed association: mean difference of 0.12 mm (95% CI -0.01, 0.25). The findings of the present study provide evidence that among subjects with atherosclerotic plaques in the abdominal aorta, the intima-media wall thickness of the distal common carotid arteries is increased.
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Erasmus University Medical School, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Bots
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Witteman
authors.forename: D E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Grobbee
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001012:Aorta, Abdominal; D001018:Aortic Diseases / Q000473:pathology*; D001161:Arteriosclerosis / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D002114:Calcinosis / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology; D017536:Carotid Artery, Common / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D017539:Tunica Intima / Q000473:pathology*; D017540:Tunica Media / Q000473:pathology*