TY - JOUR AU - Sensoz, Yavuz AU - Ates, Mehmet AU - Sahin, Sinan AU - Kayacioglu, Ilyas AU - Yekeler, Ibrahim PY - 2007/02/21 Y2 - 2024/03/28 TI - Does Atherosclerotic Aortic Plaque Detected by Telecardiography Indicate an Increased Risk of Coronary Artery Disease? JF - The Heart Surgery Forum JA - HSF VL - 10 IS - 2 SE - DO - 10.1532/HSF98.20061153 UR - https://journal.hsforum.com/index.php/HSF/article/view/118 SP - E120-E124 AB - <p><b>Objective.</b> The purpose of this study was to determine the cause of aortic arch calcification and to evaluate its prognostic value as an indicator of cardiovascular disease and its severity.</p><p><b>Methods and Results.</b> The study was conducted prospectively among 1027 patients who underwent a coronary angiography in our hospital between April 2002 and September 2002 for suspected coronary artery disease. All chest x-rays were reviewed by a radiologist, who categorized aortic arch calcifications by their presence or absence. The patients were stratified according to age (?50, 51-64, and ?65 years) to eliminate the influence of age on aortic arch calcification. Coronary lesions were considered either single-vessel or multivessel disease. Univariate analysis revealed significant correlation with age (<i>r</i> = 0.37; <i>P</i> < .001), presence of hypertension (<i>r</i> = 0.14; <i>P</i> < .001), smoking (<i>r</i> = -0.10; <i>P</i> = .001), presence of coronary artery disease (<i>r</i> = 0.10; <i>P</i> = .001), and the existence of multi-vessel disease (<i>r</i> = 0.09; <i>P</i> = .006). Multivariate analysis disclosed significant association with age and hypertension and no association with smoking, coronary artery disease, and other risk factors.</p><p><b>Conclusion.</b> The aortic arch calcifications observed on plain chest x-rays are usually age related, and both aortic arch calcifications and coronary artery disease are strongly associated with age. The presence of aortic calcification on chest x-rays was not an indicator of the presence and extent of coronary artery disease.</p> ER -