title: Correlation between Aortic Wall Thickness and Coronary Artery Disease by 64 Slice Multidetector Computed Tomography.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is a dispersed pathology involving the coronary arteries, carotid arteries, aorta and peripheral arteries. It has been previously suggested that coronary and aortic atherosclerosis may be associated. Imaging of the aorta and the aortic wall can be performed by various imaging modalities including state-of-the-art multidetector computer tomography (MDCT). This study aimed to investigate a possible association between the MDCT-measured thickness of the thoracic aorta and the presence of coronary artery disease (CAD) as well as its severity.
  
  
  METHODS
  Three hundred and fifty candidates of coronary computer tomography angiography (CTA) with signs and symptoms suggestive of CAD were recruited in Tabriz Parsian and Iran CTA Centers. Contrast-enhanced MDCT examinations were performed using a 64 detector scanner. Maximum aortic wall thickness in the mid-portion of descending thoracic aorta (region of pulmonary trunk to diaphragm) was measured perpendicular to the center of the vessel.
  
  
  RESULTS
  CAD was confirmed in 189 cases (54%) and the remaining 161 cases served as controls. The mean age of the cases, as well as the percentage of male subjects was significantly higher in the CAD group. The mean aortic wall thickness was also significantly higher in the patient group (2.21±0.63 mm vs. 1.88±0.58 mm; P<0.001). In multivariate analysis, however, the two groups turned up comparable as to the aortic wall thickness (P=0.31). The optimal cut-off point of aortic wall thickness was ≥2 mm in discriminating between CAD+ and CAD- groups, with a corresponding sensitivity and specificity of 65% and 57%, respectively. There was no significant association between aortic wall thickness and the severity of CAD (the number of significantly occluded coronary arteries).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Aortic wall thickness is apparently neither an independent predictor of CAD nor is it associated with the severity of CAD in candidates of CTA.
authors.affiliation: Tuberculosis and Pulmonary Disease Research Center, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran.
authors.forename: Abolhassan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shakeri
authors.forename: Farnaz
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Hafez Quran
authors.forename: Reza
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Javadrashid
authors.forename: Mohammad Hossein
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Abdekarimi
authors.forename: Morteza
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ghojazadeh
authors.forename: Mohammad Bassir
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Abolghassemi Fakhree
keywords: Aortic Wall Thickness; Coronary Artery Disease; Multidetector Computer; Tomography