title: Excessive aortic inflammation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: an 18F-FDG PET pilot study.
abstract: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients exhibit increased cardiovascular risk, even after controlling for smoking. Inflammation may underlie this observation.
  
  
  METHODS
  We measured vascular inflammation in both COPD patients and controls using (18)F-FDG PET/CT. Aortic inflammation was expressed as the target-to-background ratio (TBR) of the standardized uptake value in 7 COPD patients, 5 metabolic syndrome patients, and 7 ex-smokers.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Abdominal aortic mean TBR (+/-SD) was greater in COPD patients than in ex-smoker controls (1.60 +/- 0.13 vs. 1.34 +/- 0.15, P = 0.0001). Aortic arch and abdominal aorta mean TBRs were higher in metabolic syndrome patients than in COPD patients (aortic arch, 1.80 +/- 0.18 vs. 1.53 +/- 0.18, P = 0.001, and abdominal aorta, 1.71 +/- 0.14 vs. 1.60 +/- 0.13, P = 0.001).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  COPD patients exhibited aortic inflammation that fell between the aortic inflammation exhibited by ex-smokers and that by metabolic syndrome patients. This may in part explain the increased risk of cardiovascular disease in COPD patients.
authors: Wales Heart Research Institute, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, Wales, United Kingdom.
authors: James M
authors: JM
authors: Coulson
authors: James H F
authors: JH
authors: Rudd
authors: James M
authors: JM
authors: Duckers
authors: John I S
authors: JI
authors: Rees
authors: Dennis J
authors: DJ
authors: Shale
authors: Charlotte E
authors: CE
authors: Bolton
authors: John R
authors: JR
authors: Cockcroft
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001011:Aorta / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D001167:Arteritis / Q000150:complications* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000150:complications; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography; D029424:Pulmonary Disease, Chronic Obstructive / Q000150:complications*; D012907:Smoking
chemical_list: D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18