title: Coronary artery plaque burden and perioperative cardiac risk.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Electron-beam computed tomography-derived coronary calcium score correlates with the morphologic severity of coronary artery disease, reflecting both global atherosclerotic plaque formation and coronary artery luminal narrowing. The current study examines the impact of coronary atherosclerotic plaque burden, measured by coronary calcium score, on the potential for perioperative myocardial cell injury, as assessed by cardiac troponin T elevations in patients undergoing elective vascular surgery. The authors further investigated whether perioperative myocardial cell injury in those patients adversely affects noninvasive measures of left ventricular systolic function, such as ejection fraction and wall motion score.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty-one consecutive patients scheduled for vascular surgery were enrolled in this prospective study. In addition to standard preoperative evaluation, including patient history and physical examination, electron-beam computed tomography scan, 12-lead electrocardiography, and transthoracic echocardiography were performed on the day before surgery. Subsequent evaluations on postoperative days 2 and 7 included transthoracic echocardiography and 12-lead electrocardiography. Cardiac troponin T determinations were performed on the day before surgery, immediately preoperatively, and on postoperative days 1, 2, 3, and 7.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The median coronary calcium score of the 51 patients was 997.0 (25th percentile, 202.5; 75th percentile, 1,949.5). Cardiac troponin T elevations exclusively occurred in patients with a coronary calcium score greater than 1,000. The six patients (12%) with perioperative cardiac troponin T elevations had a 2.5-fold higher coronary calcium score than those without cardiac troponin T elevation (P = 0.021). In these patients, the ejection fraction decreased from 61 +/- 10% to 52 +/- 13% (mean +/- SD) on postoperative day 2 and was 54 +/- 16% on postoperative day 7 (P = 0.022).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A high electron-beam computed tomography coronary calcium score, reflecting substantial coronary plaque burden, carries an increased risk for myocardial cell injury after vascular surgery. In these patients, myocardial damage may result in deterioration of global systolic left ventricular function.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, University of Graz, Austria. elisabeth.mahla@kfunigraz.ac.at
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mahla
authors.forename: M N
authors.initials: MN
authors.lastname: Vicenzi
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schröttner
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Maier
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Tiesenhausen
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Watzinger
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rienmüller
authors.forename: R L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Moser
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Metzler
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D002114:Calcinosis / Q000150:complications*; D009202:Cardiomyopathies / Q000209:etiology*; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000150:complications; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007430:Intraoperative Care; D007431:Intraoperative Complications / Q000209:etiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D020107:Troponin T / Q000378:metabolism; D014652:Vascular Diseases / Q000601:surgery*
chemical_list: D020107:Troponin T