title: Relationship Between Brachial Artery Flow-Mediated Dilation, Carotid Artery Intima-Media Thickness and Coronary Flow Reserve in Patients With Coronary Artery Disease.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between brachial artery flow mediated dilation (FMD), carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) and coronary flow reserve (CFR) in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD).
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty patients with coronary artery disease, except left anterior descending artery (LAD), who showed no cardiac symptoms and 45 control subjects underwent assessment of brachial artery FMD, carotid artery intima-media thickness by high-resolution ultrasound. In addition, transthoracic second harmonic Doppler echocardiography was used to measure CFR.
  
  
  RESULTS
  All of the parameters were found to be correlated with each other. CFR correlated with brachial artery FMD (r = 0.232, P < 0.05) and with carotid IMT (r = -0.403, P < 0.001). Carotid IMT correlated with brachial artery FMD (r = -0.211, P < 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Transthoracic CFR correlated with well-established noninvasive predictors of atherosclerosis and we suggest that it can be used as a surrogate for coronary atherosclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Fahrettin
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Oz
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Elitok
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ahmet Kaya
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Bilge
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Fehmi
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mercanoglu
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Istanbul University, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Huseyin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Oflaz
keywords: Atherosclerosis; Carotid artery intima-media thickness; Coronary artery disease; Coronary flow reserve; Endothelial dysfunction; Flow mediated dilation