title: Ankle-brachial index and extent of atherosclerosis in patients from the Middle East (the AGATHA-ME study): a cross-sectional multicenter study.
abstract: To assess the extent of atherothrombosis and the use of the ankle-brachial index (ABI) in populations from the Middle East, we conducted a multicenter study similar to AGATHA (a Global Atherothrombosis Assessment), AGATHA-ME, which included 1341 patients from 18 centers from 5 countries (United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and Oman). Patients were assigned to 2 groups: the with-disease and at-risk groups. Abnormal ABI (< or =0.9) was seen in 31.5% of at-risk patients and 28.2% of with-disease patients. Patients with peripheral arterial disease had the highest frequency of abnormal ABI (77.6%), with 97.8 negative predictive value. The AGATHA-ME study confirms that atherothrombosis disease often occurs at more than 1 site. The ABI is related to the risk factor profile and to the site and extent of atherothrombosis. Gender and diabetes mellitus are associated with the worst parameters.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology and Cardiovascular Surgery, Medical Research Center Hamad Medical Corporation, Qatar.
authors.forename: Ayman
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: El-Menyar
authors.forename: Haitham
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Amin
authors.forename: Ibrahim
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Rashdan
authors.forename: Kadhim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Souliman
authors.forename: Dirk
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Deleu
authors.forename: Kamran
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Saadat
authors.forename: Wael
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Al Mahmeed
authors.forename: Sharif
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bakir
authors.forename: Adel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wasif
authors.forename: Azan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ben Brek
authors.forename: Nooshin
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Bazargani
authors.lastname: Ahmed Abdel Aziz
authors.forename: Rajvir
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.forename: Iman
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Hatou
authors.forename: Hisham
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mahmoud
authors.forename: Jassim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Al Suwaidi
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D055109:Ankle Brachial Index; D018912:Arabs; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008877:Middle East; D012307:Risk Factors