title: Cardiovascular disease and mortality in older adults with small abdominal aortic aneurysms detected by ultrasonography: the cardiovascular health study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Persons with abdominal aortic aneurysm are more likely to have a higher prevalence of risk factors for and clinical manifestations of cardiovascular disease. It is unknown whether these factors explain the high mortality rate associated with abdominal aortic aneurysm.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe the risk for mortality, cardiovascular mortality, and cardiovascular morbidity in persons screened for abdominal aortic aneurysm.
  
  
  METHODS
  Longitudinal cohort study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Four communities in the United States.
  
  
  METHODS
  4734 men and women older than 65 years of age recruited from Medicare eligibility lists.
  
  
  METHODS
  Abdominal ultrasonography was used to measure the aortic diameter and the ratio of infrarenal to suprarenal measurement of aortic diameter in 1992-1993. Abdominal aortic aneurysm was defined as aortic diameter of 3 cm or greater or infrarenal-to-suprarenal ratio of 1.2 or greater. Mortality, cardiovascular disease mortality, incident cardiovascular disease, and repair or rupture were assessed after 4.5 years.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of aneurysm was 8.8%, and 87.7% of aneurysms were 3.5 cm or less in diameter. Rates of total mortality (65.1 vs. 32.8 per 1000 person-years), cardiovascular mortality (34.3 vs. 13.8 per 1000 person-years), and incident cardiovascular disease (47.3 vs. 31.0 per 1000 person-years) were higher in participants with aneurysm than in those without aneurysm; after adjustment for age, risk factors, and presence of other cardiovascular disease, the respective relative risks were 1.32, 1.36, and 1.57. Rates of repair and rupture were low.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Rates of total mortality, cardiovascular disease mortality, and incident cardiovascular disease were higher in participants with abdominal aortic aneurysm than in those without aneurysm, independent of age, sex, other clinical cardiovascular disease, and extent of atherosclerosis detected by noninvasive testing. Persons with smaller aneurysms detected by ultrasonography should be advised to modify risk factors for cardiovascular disease while under surveillance for increase in the size of the aneurysm.
authors.affiliation: Division of Geriatric Medicine, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, 3520 Fifth Avenue, Suite 300, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA. anewman@pitt.edu
authors.forename: A B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Newman
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Arnold
authors.forename: G L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Burke
authors.forename: D H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: O'Leary
authors.forename: T A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Manolio
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017544:Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000401:mortality; D001019:Aortic Rupture; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009026:Mortality; D016016:Proportional Hazards Models; D012307:Risk Factors; D014463:Ultrasonography; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology