THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN PERI-CORONARY EPICARDIAL ADIPOSE TISSUE AND CORONARY ARTERIES CALCIFICATIONS TOGETHER WITH CARDIOVASCULAR RISK FACTORS IN POST-MENOPAUSAL WOMEN
By
Mohamed Roshdy Badran1, Essam A. El-Moselhy2 and Mohamed M. Elewa3
1Cardiology Department, National Heart Institute, Giza, Egypt
2Public Health Department (Clinical Epidemiology), Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Egypt
3Internal Medicine and Nephrology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt
Background: Visceral adiposity is recently used as a cardiovascular risk marker. Its roles in the development of atherosclerotic diseases may be important. Studies showed a relation between atherosclerosis of coronary arteries (CAs) and epicardial adipose tissue (EAT). Aim: To find the relation between peri-coronary EAT and cardiovascular risk factors together with coronary atherosclerosis and CAs calcifications in post-menopausal women. Patients and methods: This study included 200 post-menopausal females, suspected to have CA disease (CAD), underwent cardiac CT scans to evaluate peri-coronary EAT, CA calcifications (CACs), and coronary atherosclerosis. Accordingly, they were classified into: Patients’ group (A): 140 females with CA lesions and the control group (B): 60 females with normal coronaries. Results: The patients’ group had significantly higher peri-coronary EAT thickness than control group (9.49 mm Vs 7.15 mm for left anterior descending (LAD); p-value (< 0.001, 8.59 mm Vs 6.43 mm for left circumflex (LCX); p-value <0.001, and 9.59 mm Vs 7.76 mm for right (R)CA; p-value <0.001), and non-significant difference was existed for left main (9.30 mm Vs 9.47 mm; p-value=0.874). There was a significant positive relation between peri-coronary EAT and CAC score (9.49 mm with significant CAC score Vs 7.15 mm with non-significant CAC score; p <0.001 for LAD, similar results for LCX, and RCA, but non-significant difference for left main; p=0.844). Significant relations were found between peri-coronary EAT and dyslipidemia (p<0.001), and between peri-coronary EAT and family history of CAD (p<0.01). However, non-significant relations were found between EAT and other cardiovascular risk factors like obesity, diabetes, smoking, and hypertension. Conclusions: Peri-coronary EAT has a strong relation with coronary atherosclerosis and calcification of CAs. Further, it has a relation with some cardiovascular risk factors as well.
December 2022