Publications by authors named "Yun Qiang An"
Objectives: As a novel imaging marker, pericoronary fat attenuation index (FAI) reflects the local coronary inflammation which is one of the major mechanisms for in-stent restenosis (ISR). We aimed to validate the ability of pericoronary FAI to predict ISR in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).
Materials And Methods: Patients who underwent coronary CT angiography (CCTA) before PCI within 1 week between January 2017 and December 2019 at our hospital and had follow-up invasive coronary angiography (ICA) or CCTA were enrolled.
Background Lipid-rich plaques detected with intravascular imaging are associated with adverse cardiovascular events in patients with non-ST-segment elevation (NSTE) acute coronary syndrome (ACS). But evidence about the prognostic implication of coronary CT angiography (CCTA) in NSTE ACS is limited. Purpose To assess whether quantitative variables at CCTA that reflect lipid content in nonrevascularized plaques in individuals with NSTE ACS might be predictors of subsequent nonrevascularized plaque-related major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: For complicated Stanford type B aortic dissection (TBAD), thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) is the recommended treatment; however, the type of renal artery that should be repaired remains controversial. The study aimed to investigate the changes in the renal artery and renal volume in complicated TBAD after TEVAR and the predictors of renal atrophy.
Methods: The cohort study retrospectively enrolled patients with acute and subacute complicated TBAD who underwent aortic computed tomography angiography (CTA) 1 month before as well as 1 week and half a year after TEVAR from January 2010 to May 2017.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates a new sign called the diamond-attenuation-sign (DAS) in coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) to identify unstable atherosclerotic plaques, comparing it with the established napkin-ring sign (NRS).
- Eight heart transplant recipients were evaluated to assess different plaque patterns, revealing that DAS was identified more frequently than NRS.
- The results indicate that DAS has superior diagnostic performance for unstable coronary lesions compared to NRS, with both signs showing high specificity and positive predictive values.
Objectives: To explore whether radiomics-based machine learning (ML) models could outperform conventional diagnostic methods at identifying vulnerable lesions on coronary computed tomographic angiography (CCTA).
Methods: In this retrospective study, 36 heart transplant recipients with coronary heart disease (CAD) and end-stage heart failure were included. Pathological cross-section samples of 350 plaques were collected and coregistered to patients' preoperative CCTA images.
Background: Cardiovascular disease is the major cause of death worldwide. Hypoxia-mediated apoptosis in cardiomyocytes is a major cause of cardiovascular disorders. Treatment with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) protein has been tested but operational difficulties have limited its use.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Coronary atherosclerosis and cognitive impairment are both age-related diseases, with similar risk factors. Coronary artery calcium (CAC), a marker of coronary atherosclerosis, may play a role in early detection of individuals prone to cognitive decline. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between CAC and cognitive function, and the capability of CAC to identify participants with a high risk of dementia in a Chinese community-based population.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: A limitation associated with coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) is the lack of a normal reference value for aortic root dimensions and the uncertainty of the influence of age and gender on these dimensions. The purpose of the present study was to identify the normal values and variations of aortic root dimensions in healthy individuals and investigate how gender and age affect aortic root size.
Methods: A total of 1286 healthy yellow population (52.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates the presence of coronary artery disease (CAD) in symptomatic patients who have a coronary artery calcium score (CACS) of zero, with a focus on different age groups.
- A total of 5,514 patients were analyzed, revealing that 25.28% had plaques and 9.32% had obstructive CAD, with both conditions significantly more common in older patients.
- The findings highlight that despite a CACS of zero, many symptomatic patients—particularly those over 40—might still have CAD, indicating that coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) is essential for proper diagnosis.
Background: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is considered a cardiovascular risk factor. The aim of this study was to analyze the prevalence and volume of coronary artery plaque in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) vs. those without DM.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- The study aimed to differentiate lipid plaques in coronary arteries using CT imaging, using pathological diagnoses as the benchmark.
- Eight heart transplant patients underwent CT angiography before transplantation, and their coronary artery tissues were analyzed to identify lipid-core plaques based on specific pathological criteria.
- Results showed that the percentage of CT pixel attenuation ≤ 30 HU was significantly higher in lipid-core plaques compared to fibrous plaques, suggesting that this CT measurement could effectively diagnose lipid plaques with high sensitivity and specificity.
Rationale And Objectives: We sought to compare the prevalence and volume of lipid plaque, fibrous plaque, and calcified plaque in patients with smokers versus nonsmokers.
Materials And Methods: We studied consecutive patients suspected of coronary artery disease and who underwent coronary computed tomography angiography. A structured interview and review of existing clinical data was conducted before computed tomography angiography to collect information on demographic characteristics, the presence of cardiovascular risk factors.