title: Prognosis of aortic valve sclerosis in cardiovascular mortality of patients seen at the cardiology institute of Rio Grande do Sul.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the prognostic effect of aortic valve sclerosis on all-cause and cardiovascular mortality of patients seen at the Cardiology Institute of the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul from 1996 to 2000.
  
  
  METHODS
  A historical cohort study using information from both the database of the Echocardiography Laboratory of the Cardiology Hospital and the Death Registry of Rio Grande do Sul Health Department. The evaluation was carried out from 1996 to 2000. Study endpoints were all-cause and cardiovascular mortality.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 8585 patients were analyzed, 2154 (25%) of whom had aortic valve sclerosis. Mean follow-up was 41+/-6 months, and all-cause and cardiovascular deaths were 299 (3.5%) and 95 (1.1%), respectively. The group of patients with aortic valve sclerosis had more segmental cardiomyopathy, ventricular dysfunction, ventricular enlargement, and ventricular hypertrophy; yet, they did not show higher risk for all-cause or cardiovascular mortality in the multivariate analysis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The presence of aortic valve sclerosis was not associated with increased risk for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in the population studied.
authors: Fundacão Universitária de Cardiologia, Instituto de Cardiologia do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil. emaffini@cardiol.br
authors: Eduardo Maffini
authors: EM
authors: da Rosa
authors: João Ricardo Michielin
authors: JR
authors: Sant'anna
authors: Luciana Pimentel
authors: LP
authors: Oppermann
authors: Iran
authors: I
authors: Castro
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology*; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000401:mortality*; D004452:Echocardiography; D004812:Epidemiologic Methods; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012598:Sclerosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000401:mortality