• Priscilla Lopes da Fonseca Abrantes Sarmento, Frida Liane Plavnik, Andrea Scaciota, Joab Oliveira Lima, Robson Barbosa Miranda, and Sergio Aron Ajzen.
• Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil.
• Sao Paulo Med J. 2014 Jan 1; 132 (2): 9710497-104.

Context And ObjectiveThe thickness of the carotid intima-media complex (C-IMC) is considered to be a marker of early atherosclerosis, but visual and echogenic changes to the C-IMC can also be noted. The objective here was to evaluate the relationship between cardiovascular risk factors and the echogenicity of the C-IMC and identify those most associated with an "abnormal" C-IMC.Design And SettingCross-sectional study in the ultrasound sector of the Department of Diagnostic Imaging, Universidade Federal de São Paulo.MethodsEighty men were evaluated. Measurements of arterial blood pressure, waist circumference (WC), lipid profile, fasting glucose, uric acid and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein were obtained. The thickness of the C-IMC was measured by means of B-mode ultrasound, and the intima-media gray-scale mean (IM-GSM) and standard deviation (IM-SD) were calculated.ResultsThe following were discriminating variables: fasting glucose (r2 = 0.036; P = 0.013), uric acid (r2 = 0.08; P = 0.03), IM-SD (r2 = 0.43; P < 0.001), IM-GSM (r2 = 0.35; P < 0.001) and thickness of the C-IMC (r2 = 0.29; P < 0.001). IM-GSM showed significant correlations with WC (r = -0.22; P = 0.005), fasting glucose (r = -0.24; P = 0.002) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (r = 0.27; P = 0.0007).ConclusionIM-GSM showed correlations with WC, fasting glucose and HDL-C. However, uric acid and IM-SD presented the greatest discriminating impact. These results suggest that visual changes in C-IMC may help identify patients with potential cardiovascular risk, independently of the thickness of the C-IMC.

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