Atherosclerosis
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Systemic inflammation is higher in peripheral artery disease than in stable coronary artery disease.
The knowledge on the level of systemic inflammation in peripheral artery disease (PAD) is less well established than that in coronary artery disease (CAD). Systemic inflammation frequently coincides with atherosclerosis, but also with various traits of the metabolic syndrome (MetS). The individual contribution of CAD, PAD, and the MetS to inflammation is not known. ⋯ Inflammatory activity in PAD patients is higher than in CAD patients and is particularly high in PAD patients affected by the MetS. Low grade systemic inflammation is independently associated with both the MetS and PAD.
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Asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), which acts an endogenous inhibitor of nitric oxide synthase (NOS), is involved in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease. Arginine (Arg) may regulate vascular endothelial function, since Arg is the substrate of NO competing with ADMA. In our previous study, low Arg/ADMA ratio is an independent risk for microangiopathy-related cerebral damage. ⋯ Imbalance of Arg and ADMA is independently involved in the progression of atherosclerosis, and the Arg/ADMA ratio may be a sensitive marker for atherosclerosis.
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Review Meta Analysis
Breast arterial calcifications: a systematic review and meta-analysis of their determinants and their association with cardiovascular events.
Breast arterial calcifications (BAC), regularly observed at mammography, are medial calcifications and as such an expression of arteriosclerosis. Our objective was to evaluate and summarize the available evidence on the associations of BAC with cardiovascular risk factors and cardiovascular risk. ⋯ BAC appear to be associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease events, while only being associated with some of the known cardiovascular risk factors, illustrating that medial arterial calcification might contribute to cardiovascular disease through a pathway distinct from the intimal atherosclerotic process.
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Soluble urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) is a novel biomarker released from leukocytes and endothelial cells that has been associated with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. We hypothesized that plasma suPAR level is an independent predictor of coronary microvascular function. ⋯ In this cross-sectional study, plasma suPAR level was an independent predictor of coronary microvascular function. Larger prospective clinical trials are warranted to investigate the prognostic value of this novel biomarker and the role of immune dysregulation in coronary microvascular disease.
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The predictive value of coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) in stroke patients has not yet been established. We investigated the prognostic value of coronary artery disease (CAD) detection by CCTA, and determined the incremental risk stratification benefit of CCTA findings as compared to coronary artery calcium scores (CACS) in ischemic stroke patients without chest pain. ⋯ In ischemic stroke patients without chest pain, CCTA findings of CAD provide additional risk-discrimination over CACS.