title: Clinical significance of aortic knob width and calcification in unstable angina.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Chest radiography is a routine examination evaluating those patients with chest pain. There are few data about the correlation between aortic knob width, calcification and coronary atherosclerosis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The aortic knob width was measured and the presence of aortic knob calcification was assessed via a chest posteroanterior view in 178 consecutive patients. The aortic knob width and calcification were compared to the risk factor and the extent of coronary artery disease. Patient's age (69.5+/-7.95 vs 61.1+/-10.29 years, p=0.010), the prevalence of hypertension (65.9 vs 46.3%, p=0.024) and diabetes (43.2 vs 26.1%, p=0.033), the level of total cholesterol (196.8+/-63.21 vs 188.6+/-44.45 mg/dl, p=0.049) and the incidence of multi-vessel disease (65.9 vs 38.1%, p<0.001) were higher in patients with aortic knob calcification than in patients without calcification. The aortic knob width and the prevalence of aortic knob calcification were significantly correlated with the severity of coronary artery disease. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that aortic knob calcification and diabetes were independent factors for multi-vessel disease (p=0.018 and p=0.012).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The observation of aortic knob on a chest radiograph can provide important predictive information of coronary atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Wonkwang University Hospital, Iksan, Korea.
authors.forename: Kyeong Ho
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Yun
authors.forename: Myung Ho
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Jeong
authors.forename: Seok Kyu
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.forename: Eun Mi
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Park
authors.forename: Yun Kyung
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Sang Jae
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Rhee
authors.forename: Eun Mi
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Nam Jin
authors.initials: NJ
authors.lastname: Yoo
authors.forename: Nam-Ho
authors.initials: NH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Young
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Keun
authors.forename: Jin-Won
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Jeong
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000789:Angina, Unstable / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D001018:Aortic Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D002114:Calcinosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D003925:Diabetic Angiopathies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension; D008297:Male; D008400:Mass Chest X-Ray; D008875:Middle Aged; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index
chemical_list: D002784:Cholesterol