title: Patients with chronic gastrointestinal ischemia have a higher cardiovascular disease risk and mortality.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We determined the prevalence of classical risk factors for atherosclerosis and mortality risk in patients with CGI.
  
  
  METHODS
  A case-control study was conducted. Patients referred with suspected CGI underwent a standard work-up including risk factors for atherosclerosis, radiological imaging of abdominal vessels and tonometry. Cases were patients with confirmed atherosclerotic CGI. Controls were healthy subjects previously not known with CGI. The mortality risk was calculated as standardized mortality ratio derived from observed mortality, and was estimated with ten-year risk of death using SCORE and PREDICT.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Between 2006 and 2009, 195 patients were evaluated for suspected CGI. After a median follow-up of 19 months, atherosclerotic CGI was diagnosed in 68 patients. Controls consisted of 132 subjects. Female gender, diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, a personal and family history of cardiovascular disease (CVD), and current smoking are highly associated with CGI. After adjustment, female gender (OR 2.14 95% CI 1.05-4.36), diabetes (OR 5.59, 95% CI 1.95-16.01), current smoking (OR 5.78, 95% CI 2.27-14.72), and history of CVD (OR 21.61, 95% CI 8.40-55.55) remained significant. CGI patients >55 years had a higher median ten-year risk of death (15% vs. 5%, P = 0.001) compared to controls. During follow-up of 116 person-years, standardized mortality rate was higher in CGI patients (3.55; 95% CI 1.70-6.52).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with atherosclerotic CGI have an increased estimated CVD risk, and severe excess mortality. Secondary cardiovascular prevention therapy should be advocated in patients with CGI.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. a.sana@erasmusmc.nl
authors.forename: Aria
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sana
authors.forename: Désirée
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: van Noord
authors.forename: Peter B F
authors.initials: PB
authors.lastname: Mensink
authors.forename: Stephanie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kooij
authors.forename: Kim
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: van Dijk
authors.forename: Bert
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bravenboer
authors.forename: Aloysius G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Lieverse
authors.forename: Eric J G
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Sijbrands
authors.forename: Janneke G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Langendonk
authors.forename: Ernst J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Kuipers
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000401:mortality; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000401:mortality*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000098:blood supply*; D006801:Humans; D007511:Ischemia / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D012307:Risk Factors