High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) in systemic lupus erythematosus patients without cardiac involvement; relation to disease activity,damage and intima-media thickness

Aim of the workTo assess the high sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP level) in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients without cardiac involvement and find its relation with clinical and laboratory findings, disease activity, damage index and intima-media thickness (IMT).Patients and methodsForty-five female SLE patients were recruited in the present study without any cardiac involvement. History taking, examination and laboratory investigations were performed for patients. Disease activity was evaluated by the Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Disease Activity Index (SLEDAI) and damage by the Systemic Lupus International Collaborating Clinics (SLICC) index. Thirty age matched female healthy subjects were considered as a control group. hs-CRP was measured quantitatively by microplate immunoenzymometric assay and the IMT measured by ultrasonography.ResultsThe hs-CRP in the patients was significantly higher (4.84 ± 3.91 mg/l) compared to the control (1.74 ± 0.61 mg/l) (p < 0.001). The IMT in the patients was significantly increased (0.72 ± 0.37 mm) compared to the control (0.54 ± 0.15 mm) (p 0.004). There was no difference in the level of hs-CRP according to the presence or absence of clinical manifestations. However, it was significantly higher in those with positive DNA (5.71 ± 4.36 mg/L) compared to those with negative results (3.12 ± 1.97 mg/L) (p 0.009). There was a significant correlation of the hs-CRP level with the IMT (r 0.49, p 0.001) and SLEDAI (r 0.67, p < 0.001).ConclusionsThese findings suggest that SLE patients without traditional major cardiovascular risk factors may have increased risk of future cardiac events. Measuring hs-CRP may be useful as a marker of disease activity, increased IMT and subclinical atherosclerosis in SLE especially those with positive ds-DNA.     

Disfunción eréctil,síndrome metabólico y arteriopatía. Relación clínico-patológica mediante ecografía carotídea

IntroductionDifferent studies have shown the relationship between erectile dysfunction, metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease. The objective of this study was to evaluate the presence of arteriopathy performing carotid ultrasound in patients with and without erectile dysfunction.Material and methodsWe conducted a case-control study with 44 patients consulting for erectile dysfunction and 20 controls. All subjects completed the IIEF-5 test and we studied the criteria for metabolic syndrome, and a carotid ultrasound to study the intima-media thickness and the presence of atherosclerotic plaques was performed.ResultsMean intima-media thickness was .71 mm ± .21 for the right and of .71 ± .17 for the left carotid in patients with erectile dysfunction. In the control group, the means were .54 ± 0.11 and 0.59 ± 0.15 mm respectively, statistically significant differences (P = .02 and P = .05 respectively). No plaque was found in any control, but in 25% of both carotid arteries of patients with erectile dysfunction (P = .01). As metabolic syndrome, according to the American Heart Association, were diagnosed 52.8% of patients with erectile dysfunction, and 16.7% of controls, and according to the International Diabetes Federation, 52.3% of patients with erectile dysfunction and 25% of controls met diagnostic criteria. In both cases there were significant differences (P < .01 and P = .02 respectively). We found a positive linear correlation between waist circumference and the intima-media thickness in both carotid (P < .05).ConclusionsPatients with erectile dysfunction may be at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, as determined by the presence of arterial disease in the carotid arteries, which indicates that we should made a more thorough and comprehensive study of patients with erectile dysfunction.     

Relationship of lipid oxidation with subclinical atherosclerosis and 10-year coronary events in general population

Objectives

To assess 1) the association of lipid oxidation biomarkers with 10-year coronary artery disease (CAD) events and subclinical atherosclerosis, and 2) the reclassification capacity of these biomarkers over Framingham-derived CAD risk functions, in a general population.

Methods

Within the framework of the REGICOR study, 4782 individuals aged between 25 and 74 years were recruited in a population-based cohort study. Follow-up of the 4042 who met the eligibility criteria was carried out. Plasma, circulating oxidized low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL) and oxLDL antibodies (OLAB) were measured in a random sample of 2793 participants.End-points included fatal and non-fatal acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and angina. Carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) in the highest quintile and ankle-brachial index <0.9 were considered indicators of subclinical atherosclerosis.

Results

Mean age was 50.0 (13.4) years, and 52.4% were women. There were 103 CAD events (34 myocardial infarction, 43 angina, 26 coronary deaths), and 306 subclinical atherosclerosis cases. Oxidized LDL was independently associated with higher incidence of CAD events (HR = 1.70; 95% Confidence Interval: 1.02–2.84), but not with subclinical atherosclerosis. The net classification index of the Framingham-derived CAD risk function was significantly improved when ox-LDL was included (NRI = 14.67% [4.90; 24.45], P = 0.003). No associations were found between OLAB and clinical or subclinical events. The reference values for oxLDL and OLAB are also provided (percentiles).

Conclusions

OxLDL was independently associated with 10-year CAD events but not subclinical atherosclerosis in a general population, and improved the reclassification capacity of Framingham-derived CAD risk functions.     

APOE polymorphism and carotid atherosclerosis in Korean population: The Dong-gu Study and the Namwon Study

Objective

We evaluated the association between APOE polymorphism and carotid atherosclerosis in two large independent cohorts from South Korea.

Methods

The datasets were from the Dong-gu Study (N = 9056) and the Namwon Study (N = 10,158). Carotid ultrasonography was performed to measure carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and the presence of carotid plaques. The APOE polymorphism was determined by PCR-RFLP. We performed combined and separate analyses for the two datasets.

Results

In the combined analysis, individuals with E2E2 or E2E3 genotype had a lower common carotid IMT compared with individuals with E3E3 genotype (0.684 mm vs. 0.736 mm, p = 0.007; 0.718 mm vs. 0.736 mm, p < 0.001, respectively). This association was very slightly attenuated but remained statistically significant after adjustment for blood lipids (0.690 mm vs. 0.736 mm, p = 0.033; 0.725 mm vs. 0.736 mm, p = 0.005, respectively). Compared with individuals with E3E3 genotype, individuals with E2E3 genotype had lower risk for carotid plaque (odds ratio (OR) = 0.83, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.75–0.93), while individuals with E3E4 genotype had a higher risk for carotid plaque (OR = 1.09, 95% CI = 1.00–1.20). After adjustment for blood lipids, ORs of E2E3 genotype for carotid plaque was slightly attenuated but remained significant (OR = 0.87 95% CI = 0.78–0.97), while OR of E3E4 genotype were slightly attenuated and not significant (OR = 1.08, 95% CI, 0.99–1.18).

Conclusions

We found that APOE polymorphism is associated with carotid atherosclerosis and this association was partly mediated through blood lipid. Our results suggest that APOE polymorphism may influence atherosclerosis through non-lipid pathways.     

超声射频信号技术评价健康成人颈总动脉结构及功能

目的 应用超声射频信号的血管内-中膜分析技术（QIMT）、血管硬度定量分析技术(QAS) 评价健康成人颈总动脉结构及功能。方法 360例健康成人根据年龄分成3组：青年组（20~39岁组）、中年组（40~59岁组）和老年组（60~79岁组）,每组均120人,分别应用QIMT测量双侧颈总动脉内-中膜厚度（IMT）,QAS技术测量双侧颈总动脉的弹性参数,包括扩张系数（DD）、顺应性系数（CC）、硬度指数(α、β)、脉搏波传导速度(PWV),分析各项参数在双侧颈总动脉、不同性别、不同年龄组之间的差异。结果 ①颈总动脉QIMT和QAS指标在颈总动脉左右两侧组间差异均无统计学意义;②颈总动脉DC在两性别组之间的差异有统计学意义,男性高于女性(P<0.05);③从青年组经中年组到老年组,IMT依次增厚、DC依次减小,差异均有统计学意义(P<0.05),与青年组比较,中年组和老年组的CC减低,α、β及PWV增加,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05),而在中年组与老年组之间差异没有统计学意义。结论 健康成人颈总动脉结构及功能随年龄、性别变化存在差异。     

高血压患者动脉硬度指数与颈动脉内膜-中膜厚度、斑块的关系

目的 进一步了解动脉硬度指数(ASI)定量检测动脉硬化程度的可靠性.方法 用YF-1血管硬度测量仪测量87例高血压病人的ASI,并用高频超声测量其颈动脉内膜-中膜厚度(IMT)和斑块.结果 (1)ASI与IMT呈正相关:r=0.395,P<0.01, ASI正常组(0～70)、轻度升高组(71～120)、中度升高组(121～180)和重度升高组(＞180)的IMT值依次为(0.74±0.13)、(0.88±0.12)、(0.94±0.12)和(0.97±0.15)mm,后3组与正常组的IMT比较,差异均有非常显著意义(P＜0.01).(2)0级斑块组ASI值为(120.1±57.7)、1级斑块组ASI值为(124.1±48.3)、2级斑块组ASI值为(158.6±49.8)和3级斑块组ASI值为(204.7±47.0), 2级斑块组和3级斑块组的ASI高于0级斑块组(P<0.01),3级斑块组的ASI高于1级斑块组(P<0.05).结论 ASI是一个较好的检测动脉硬化的指标.其应用价值尚需较大规模临床人群验证.     

Atherosclerosis in women with endometriosis

OBJECTIVE: This study aims to determine whether women with endometriosis have greater subclinical atherosclerosis than the general population. STUDY DESIGN: This case-control study included 66 women with endometriosis and 66 controls matched for age and body mass index. All subjects were >or=35 years old. Exclusion criteria were obesity, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia, renal or metabolic diseases. Before laparoscopy, all patients underwent a measurement of intima-media thickness (IMT) and distensibility coefficient (DC) on the common carotid artery. In addition, blood samples were taken to determine the levels of lipids, fibrinogen, C-reactive protein, homocysteine, fasting glycemia, antithrombin III, plasminogen, protein C, protein S, and activated protein C resistance. RESULTS: All the biochemical parameters evaluated had similar levels in the two study groups. IMT was similar in women with endometriosis and in controls both on left (p=0.330) and right (p=0.648) carotid artery. Similarly, no significant difference was observed in the DC between women with endometriosis and controls both on left (p=0.539) and right (p=0.178) carotid artery. No significant difference was observed in IMT and DC between women with mild and severe endometriosis. CONCLUSION: Women with endometriosis do not have more subclinical atherosclerosis than the general population.     

基于深度学习的颈动脉超声图像内中膜厚度测量

目的 颈动脉血管内中膜厚度(IMT)是衡量动脉粥样硬化程度的重要标准.一般采用人工标定进行测量,该过程耗时且繁琐,由此提出一种总体性能较好的全自动分割(AS)算法.方法 该算法首先利用卷积神经网络(CNN)识别出颈动脉血管远端,进而提取包含颈动脉内膜、中膜部分的感兴趣区域(ROI).采用基于堆栈式自编码器(SAE)构造的模式分类器将ROI中的像素进行分类.最后利用分类区域的面积信息和位置信息对分类结果进行甄别,运用曲线拟合提取边界完成测量任务.结果 针对本研究所用图像库中的84幅颈动脉超声图像进行实验,金标准(GT)由两名专家4次测量的平均值产生,其与AS之间的绝对误差和标准差为(13.3±20.5) μm,协方差系数为0.990 7.结论 实验结果表明,此算法总体性能较好,能够实现超声颈动脉血管内中膜全自动、快速、准确分割,从而满足临床需要.     

高频超声对脑梗死患者颈动脉结构与功能改变的评价

目的应用高频超声研究脑梗死患者颈动脉血管结构与功能的改变。方法应用高频超声对46例脑梗死患者和40例健康老年人颈动脉行二维超声检查,观察并记录颈动脉内-中膜有无增厚、有无斑块、斑块数目和回声情况,测量舒张期内-中膜厚度(IMT);M-型超声记录颈总动脉前后壁在收缩期和舒张期运动幅度变化,测量舒张期和收缩期的内径,计算内-中膜横截面积(IMSCA)、僵硬度β指数、扩张性(distensibility)和顺应性(compliance)等参数。结果脑梗死患者比健康老年人斑块数目及低回声斑块检出率增加,最大IMT和平均IMT增厚,内-中膜横截面积、收缩期内径和舒张期内径、僵硬度指数增大,扩张性和顺应性降低(P<0.05)。IMT与僵硬度指数、扩张性和顺应性无明显相关性。IM-SCA、僵硬度指数、扩张性和顺应性与脉压相关(P<0.01),而与收缩压、舒张压等无明显相关性(P>0.05)。结论高频超声是无创诊断颈动脉早期动脉硬化的简便有效的方法,颈动脉IMT结合僵硬度、扩张性和顺应性等指标可反映脑梗死患者颈动脉血管结构和功能变化的特征,可提供更全面的信息。     

血流剪切力对动脉粥样硬化影响的临床研究

目的探讨血流剪切力对动脉粥样硬化的影响。方法采用高分辨力声像仪测量25例动脉粥样硬化患者颈动脉内中膜厚度,其中男15例,女10例,平均年龄(54.3±10.6)岁;同时测量该处血管的血流剪切力(τm),具体计算公式如下:τm=η×4×Vm/D。通过直线相关分析判定内中膜厚度和血流剪切力的关系。结果25例动脉粥样硬化患者颈动脉平均血流剪切力为(16.3±4.6)dynes/cm2,明显低于于正常对照组(P<0.05);颈动脉内中膜厚度明显高于正常对照组(P<0.01)。下降的血流剪切力与增厚的内中膜厚度呈明显负相关(r=-0.74,P<0.05)。结论本研究表明动脉粥样硬化组颈动脉血流剪切力显著下降,下降的血流剪切力可影响颈动脉内中膜厚度的变化,对预测早期动脉粥样硬化有一定意义。