Calcified atherosclerosis in different vascular beds and the risk of mortality.

Objective: The goal of this study was to determine differences in risks for total and cause-specific mortality related to calcified atherosclerosis in different vascular beds.

Methods And Results: A total of 4544 patients underwent computed tomography scans that were interrogated for calcium in different vascular beds. Mortality assessment was conducted by death certificate adjudication.

Association of pulse pressure, arterial elasticity, and endothelial function with kidney function decline among adults with estimated GFR >60 mL/min/1.73 m(2): the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).

Background: The association of subclinical vascular disease and early declines in kidney function has not been well studied.

Study Design: Prospective cohort study.

Setting & Participants: Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) participants with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) ≥60 mL/min/1.

The downward shift of the aortic bifurcation, a possible marker for vascular aging.

Purpose: Radiographers in both clinical and research settings utilize lumbar vertebral landmarks (i.e. L5/S1) on scout films to guide imaging of the abdominal aorta.

Association of body mass index with peripheral arterial disease in older adults: the Cardiovascular Health Study.

The authors hypothesized that the absence of cross-sectional associations of body mass index (BMI; weight (kg)/height (m)(2)) with peripheral arterial disease (PAD) in prior studies may reflect lower weight among persons who smoke or have poor health status. They conducted an observational study among 5,419 noninstitutionalized residents of 4 US communities aged ≥ 65 years at baseline (1989-1990 or 1992-1993). Ankle brachial index was measured, and participants reported their history of PAD procedures.

Family history of peripheral artery disease is associated with prevalence and severity of peripheral artery disease: the San Diego population study.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine the association of family history of peripheral artery disease (PAD) with PAD prevalence and severity.

Background: PAD is a significant public health problem. Shared genetic and environmental factors may play an important role in the development of PAD.

Association of self-reported race/ethnicity and genetic ancestry with arterial elasticity: the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).

African Americans have a disproportionate burden of hypertension compared with white, whereas data on Hispanics is less well-defined. Mechanisms underlying these differences are unclear, but could be in part because of ancestral background and vascular function. We studied 660 African Americans and 635 Hispanics from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) with complete data on genetic ancestry, pulse pressure (PP), and large and small arterial elasticity (LAE, SAE).

The association of bone density and calcified atherosclerosis is stronger in women without dyslipidemia: the multi-ethnic study of atherosclerosis.

We tested whether the association between bone mineral density (BMD) and coronary artery calcification (CAC) varies according to dyslipidemia in community-living individuals. Between 2002 and 2005, 305 women and 631 men (mean age of 64 years), who were not taking lipid-lowering medications or estrogen were assessed for spine BMD, CAC, and total (TC), HDL- and LDL-cholesterol and triglycerides. Participants were a random sample from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) without clinical cardiovascular disease.

Superficial femoral artery plaque and functional performance in peripheral arterial disease: walking and leg circulation study (WALCS III).

Objectives: We studied associations of magnetic resonance imaging measurements of plaque area and relative percent lumen reduction in the proximal superficial femoral artery with functional performance among participants with peripheral arterial disease.

Background: The clinical significance of directly imaged plaque characteristics in lower extremity arteries is not well established.

Methods: A total of 454 participants with an ankle brachial index <1.

Association of lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A(2) and endothelial function in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).

Mechanisms underlying the role of lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A(2) (Lp-PLA(2)) in atherosclerotic development are not completely understood. We evaluated the relationship of Lp-PLA(2) with endothelial dysfunction, an early manifestation of atherosclerosis, in a cohort without known clinical cardiovascular disease. A total of 2809 participants in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis underwent plasma Lp-PLA(2) mass and activity measurement and brachial artery flow-mediated vasodilation testing.

Poorer clock draw test scores are associated with greater functional impairment in peripheral artery disease: the Walking and Leg Circulation Study II.

We hypothesized that, in the absence of clinically recognized dementia, cognitive dysfunction measured by the clock draw test (CDT) is associated with greater functional impairment in men and women with peripheral artery disease (PAD). Participants were men and women aged 60 years and older with Mini-Mental Status Examination scores ≥ 24 with PAD (n = 335) and without PAD (n = 234). We evaluated the 6-minute walk test, 4-meter walking velocity at usual and fastest pace, the Short Physical Performance Battery (SPPB), and accelerometer-measured physical activity.

Greater sedentary hours and slower walking speed outside the home predict faster declines in functioning and adverse calf muscle changes in peripheral arterial disease.

Objectives: In participants with peripheral arterial disease (PAD), we determined whether more sedentary behavior and slower outdoor walking speed were associated with faster functional decline and more adverse changes in calf muscle characteristics over time.

Background: Modifiable behaviors associated with faster functional decline in lower-extremity PAD are understudied.

Methods: Participants were 384 men and women with an ankle brachial index <0.

Pulmonary function is associated with distal aortic calcium, not proximal aortic distensibility. MESA lung study.

Forced expiratory volume in one second strongly predicts mortality from cardiovascular disease. FEV(1) has been associated with aortic stiffness a strong independent predictor of cardiovascular mortality. However, the anatomical site and possible mechanisms linking aortic stiffness and lung function are unknown.

The association between abdominal body composition and vascular calcification.

Subclinical cardiovascular disease (CVD) may be associated with both adipose and skeletal muscle tissues in the abdomen. Accordingly, we examined whether subcutaneous, intermuscular, and visceral adipose tissue, as well as abdominal lean muscle, were associated with the presence and extent of vascular calcification in multiple vascular beds. Three hundred and ninety four patients (58.

Association between obesity, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein ≥2 mg/L, and subclinical atherosclerosis: implications of JUPITER from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Objective: High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) levels are closely associated with abdominal obesity, metabolic syndrome, and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. The Justification for the Use of Statins in Primary Prevention: An Intervention Trial Evaluating Rosuvastatin (JUPITER) trial has encouraged using hsCRP ≥2 mg/L to guide statin therapy; however, the association of hsCRP and atherosclerosis, independent of obesity, remains unknown.

Methods And Results: We studied 6760 participants from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA).

Associations of calf skeletal muscle characteristics and peripheral nerve function with self-perceived physical functioning and walking ability in persons with peripheral artery disease.

We determined whether more adverse calf muscle characteristics and poorer peripheral nerve function were associated with impairments in self-perceived physical functioning and walking ability in persons with lower extremity peripheral artery disease (PAD). Participants included 462 persons with PAD; measures included the ankle-brachial index (ABI), medical history, electrophysiologic characteristics of nerves, and computed tomography of calf muscle. Self-perceived physical functioning and walking ability were assessed using the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) and the Walking Impairment Questionnaire (WIQ).

Superficial femoral artery plaque, the ankle-brachial index, and leg symptoms in peripheral arterial disease: the walking and leg circulation study (WALCS) III.

Background: The clinical significance of magnetic resonance-imaged plaque characteristics in the superficial femoral artery (SFA) is not well established. We studied associations of the ankle-brachial index (ABI) and leg symptoms with MRI-measured plaque area and percent lumen area in the SFA in participants with and without lower-extremity peripheral arterial disease (PAD).

Methods And Results: Four hundred twenty-seven participants (393 with PAD) underwent plaque imaging of the first 30 mm of the SFA.

Relation of interleukin-6 and vascular cellular adhesion molecule-1 levels to functional decline in patients with lower extremity peripheral arterial disease.

The aim of this study was to determine whether persistently high levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6) or soluble vascular adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1) are associated with faster functional decline compared to fluctuating or persistently low biomarker levels in 255 participants with peripheral arterial disease. Participants underwent baseline and ≥2 annual follow-up measures of IL-6 and sVCAM-1. Participants were categorized as follows: category 1, annual levels of IL-6 (or sVCAM-1) were in the lowest tertile for ≥3 study visits; category 3, annual levels of IL-6 (or sVCAM-1) were in the highest tertile for ≥3 visits.

Decline in functional performance predicts later increased mobility loss and mortality in peripheral arterial disease.

Objectives: We hypothesized that a greater 2-year decline in office-based functional performance measures would be associated with greater mobility loss and mortality in people with peripheral arterial disease (PAD).

Background: Associations of decline in functional performance with clinically important outcomes in patients with PAD are unknown.

Methods: A total of 440 men and women with PAD completed the 6-min walk test and measures of walking velocity at baseline and annually for 2 years.

Women with peripheral arterial disease experience faster functional decline than men with peripheral arterial disease.

Objectives: We hypothesized that women with lower extremity peripheral arterial disease (PAD) would have greater mobility loss and faster functional decline than men with PAD.

Background: Whether rates of mobility loss or functional decline differ between men and women with PAD is currently unknown.

Methods: Three hundred eighty men and women with PAD completed the 6-min walk, were assessed for mobility disability, and underwent measures of 4-m walking velocity at baseline and annually for up to 4 years.

The prognosis of diabetic patients with high ankle-brachial index depends on the coexistence of occlusive peripheral artery disease.

Objectives: High ankle-brachial index (ABI) (>1.40) is associated with poor cardiovascular disease (CVD) prognosis. Concomittant peripheral artery disease (PAD) is frequent, although undetectable with the ABI in this situation.

Lower extremity peripheral artery disease in the absence of traditional risk factors. The Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Objective: Lower-extremity peripheral artery disease (LE-PAD), is strongly related to traditional risk factors (smoking, hypertension, dyslipidemia, diabetes). We hypothesized that the prevalence of LE-PAD in the absence of traditional CVD risk factors is not negligible, and that this condition would remain associated with subclinical atherosclerosis in other territories.

Methods: In the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis, we classified participants without any traditional risk factor according to their ankle-brachial index (ABI) into 3 groups: low (<1.

Abdominal aortic calcium and multi-site atherosclerosis: the Multiethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Background: Abdominal aortic calcification (AAC) is a measure of subclinical cardiovascular disease (CVD). Data are limited regarding its relation to other measures of atherosclerosis.

Methods: Among 1812 subjects (49% female, 21% black, 14% Chinese, and 25% Hispanic) within the population-based Multiethnic Study of Atherosclerosis, we examined the cross-sectional relation of AAC with coronary artery calcium (CAC), ankle brachial index (ABI), and carotid intimal medial thickness (CIMT), as well as multiple measures of subclinical CVD.

The ankle-brachial index and incident cardiovascular events in the MESA (Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis).

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to examine the association of both a low and a high ankle-brachial index (ABI) with incident cardiovascular events in a multiethnic cohort.

Background: Abnormal ABIs, both low and high, are associated with elevated cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. However, it is unknown whether this association is consistent across different ethnic groups, and whether it is independent of both newer biomarkers and other measures of subclinical atherosclerotic CVD.

Genetic ancestry and lower extremity peripheral artery disease in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis.

Using self-report of race/ethnicity, African Americans consistently have a higher prevalence of peripheral artery disease (PAD) compared to other ethnic groups. We aimed to determine the associations between estimated genetic admixture and PAD among African and Hispanic Americans. We studied the association between genetic ancestry and PAD among 1417 African and Hispanic American participants in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis who were genotyped for ancestry informative markers (AIMs).