High prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysm in patients with three-vessel coronary artery disease.
OBJECTIVE
Currently, the prevalence of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) and the correlation between CAD severity and AAA prevalence are not clearly known. We conducted a prospective study to determine the prevalence of AAA in patients undergoing coronary angiography and to determine the risk factors and a coronary profile associated with AAA.


METHODS
Over an 18-month period, abdominal aortic ultrasound was performed on 1,000 patients undergoing coronary angiography for suspected or known CAD, or prior to valve surgery. Clinical characteristics and coronary profile were collected from the patients.


RESULTS
The overall number of previously repaired, already diagnosed, and new cases of AAA in the study population was 42, yielding a prevalence of 4.2%. Among the patients with newly detected AAAs, only two had an AAA diameter of >54 mm and were therefore treated surgically. In men aged ≥ 65 years, the prevalence reached 8.6%, while in men with three-vessel CAD it was 14.4%. Multivariate analysis showed that age ≥ 65 years (p = .003), male gender (p = .003), family history of AAA (p = .01), current smoking (p = .002), and three-vessel CAD (p < .001) were significantly associated with a higher prevalence of AAA.


CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of AAA was high in men aged ≥ 65 years and in those with three-vessel CAD regardless of age. While our findings do not prove the cost-effectiveness of screening for AAA in these high risk patients, they do support the usefulness of a quick ultrasound examination of the abdominal aorta during routine transthoracic echocardiography in such patients.
Department Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Liège, Liège, Belgium. Electronic address: rdurieux@chu.ulg.ac.be.
R
R
Durieux
Department Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
H
H
Van Damme
Department of Vascular Surgery, Stony Brook University Medical Center, Stony Brook, NY, USA.
N
N
Labropoulos
Department Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
A
A
Yazici
Department of Cardiology, University Hospital of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
V
V
Legrand
Department of Medical Informatics and Biostatistics, University Hospital of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
A
A
Albert
Department Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
J-O
JO
Defraigne
Department Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, University Hospital of Liège, Liège, Belgium.
N
N
Sakalihasan
D000368:Aged; D017544:Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology; D014463:Ultrasonography
Abdominal aortic aneurysm; Coronary artery disease; Screening