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Longitudinal heterogeneity of coronary artery distensibility in plaques related to acute coronary syndrome

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Abstract

Background

How coronary distensibility contributes to stable or unstable clinical manifestations remains obscure. We postulated that the heterogeneous plaque distensibility is associated with unstable clinical presentations in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

Methods and results

Seventeen and 19 ACS-related and -unrelated lesions, respectively, were visualized using intravascular ultrasound imaging with simultaneous intracoronary pressure recording. Systolic and diastolic lumen cross-sectional areas were measured at the lesion site and at five evenly spaced sites between the proximal and distal reference sites. The coronary distensibility index and stiffness index β were calculated for each site and averaged for each coronary segment. Maximal distensibility index, standard deviation and the difference between maximal and minimal distensibility indices within each segment were significantly higher in the ACS-related than -unrelated plaques (5.6 ± 2.3 vs. 3.7 ± 1.8, p < 0.001, 2.1 ± 0.9 vs. 1.1 ± 0.6, p < 0.001 and 5.3 ± 2.3 vs. 2.8 ± 1.5, p < 0.001, respectively). Moreover, the difference in the distensibility index between the lesion site of ACS-related plaques and the immediate proximal site was significantly larger (2.88 ± 2.35 vs. 1.17 ± 1.44, p = 0.022) than that in ACS-unrelated plaques.

Conclusions

Coronary artery distensibility is longitudinally more heterogeneous in ACS-related than-unrelated plaques, especially between the lesion and the immediate proximal site.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported in part by a research grant from the Japan Foundation of Cardiovascular Research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Cardiology, Saitama Medical Center, Saitama Medical University, 1981 Kamoda, Kawagoe, Saitama, 350-8550, Japan

    Osamu Sasaki, Toshihiko Nishioka, Yoshiro Inoue, Ami Isshiki, Kentarou Toyama, Aki Koike, Toshiyuki Ando, Mikio Yuhara, Shun-ichi Sato, Tetsuo Kamiyama, Masato Kirimura, Hiroyuki Ito, Yoshiaki Maruyama & Nobuo Yoshimoto

  2. Division of Cardiology, Saitama City Hospital, Saitama, Japan

    Takashi Akima

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  1. Osamu Sasaki
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  2. Toshihiko Nishioka
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Correspondence to Toshihiko Nishioka.

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Sasaki, O., Nishioka, T., Inoue, Y. et al. Longitudinal heterogeneity of coronary artery distensibility in plaques related to acute coronary syndrome. Clin Res Cardiol 101, 545–551 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00392-012-0424-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00392-012-0424-6

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