title: Association between aortic stiffness and left ventricular function in inflammatory bowel disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recent studies have reported an increased incidence of both aortic stiffness and left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic dysfunction in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). However, the association between aortic stiffness and the LV function has not been fully defined. We aimed to investigate the relationship between aortic stiffness and the LV function in IBD patients.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Seventy-two patients with IBD (56 cases of ulcerative colitis and 16 cases of Crohn's disease) and 50 healthy controls were consecutively enrolled in this study. The LV systolic and diastolic functions were assessed using conventional echocardiographic techniques, including tissue Doppler echocardiography. The degree of aortic strain and distensibility were calculated based on the aortic diameters measured on M-mode echocardiography at thelevel of 3 cm above the aortic valve and the blood pressure values obtained on sphygmomanometry. There were significant differences between the IBD and control group in the degree of aortic strain and distensibility. Significant differences were also observed between the patient and control groups in the parameters of the LV systolic and diastolic functions. Moreover, aortic stiffness was found to be associated with the LV function in the patient group.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There is a significant relationship between aortic stiffness and LV systolic and diastolic dysfunction in patients with IBD, based on the findings of this study. The parameters of aortic elasticity measured according to 2-dimensional echocardiographic methods can be beneficial for predicting early cardiovascular risk in cases of IBD. (.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Ataturk Education and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkey. drnabiaslan@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Abdullah Nabi
authors.initials: AN
authors.lastname: Aslan
authors.forename: Cenk
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sarı
authors.forename: Sevil
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Özer Sarı
authors.forename: Öykü
authors.initials: Ö
authors.lastname: Tayfur Yürekli
authors.forename: Serdal
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Baştuğ
authors.forename: Serkan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sivri
authors.forename: Osman
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ersoy
authors.forename: Engin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Bozkurt
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015150:Echocardiography, Doppler; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015212:Inflammatory Bowel Diseases / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D059289:Vascular Stiffness / Q000502:physiology*; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: aortic stiffness; inflammatory bowel disease; left ventricular function; tissue Doppler echocardiography