TY - JOUR
T1 - Aortic root dilatation in hypertensive patients
T2 - A multicenter survey in echocardiographic practice
AU - Cuspidi, Cesare
AU - Negri, Francesca
AU - Salvetti, Massimo
AU - Lonati, Laura
AU - Sala, Carla
AU - Capra, Anna
AU - Milan, Alberto
AU - Danzi, Gian Battista
AU - Morganti, Alberto
PY - 2011/10
Y1 - 2011/10
N2 - Background and aim. Aortic root dilatation (ARD) is a cardiovascular phenotype of adverse prognostic value; its prevalence has been mostly investigated in population-based samples and selected hypertensive cohorts. Data from clinical practice are rather scant. Thus, we examined the prevalence and correlates of ARD in a large sample of hypertensive patients referred by general practitioners for a routine echocardiographic examination. Methods. A total of 2229 untreated and treated hypertensive subjects (mean age 62 years) referred to 17 outpatient echocardiographic laboratories across Italy for detection of hypertensive subclinical cardiac damage were included in the study. ARD was defined by aortic diameter exceeding 3.7 cm in women and 3.9 cm in men. Results. ARD was found in 263 patients, with an overall prevalence of 11.8% (16.9% in men and 6.2% in women, p <0.05). In multivariate regression analyses, body surface area (BSA), left ventricular (LV) mass and age were in ranking order the most important correlates of aortic root size in the whole population study as well as in men. In women, LV mass and its derivative indexes were the most important independent variables associated to aortic root size. Conclusions. This multicenter nationwide survey indicates that ARD is a frequent cardiovascular phenotype in hypertensives referred to echo-labs for detection of hypertensive organ damage. BSA, LV mass and age are the most important correlates of this phenotype. The hierarchical order of these factors differs between genders, LV mass being the strongest independent variable in women.
AB - Background and aim. Aortic root dilatation (ARD) is a cardiovascular phenotype of adverse prognostic value; its prevalence has been mostly investigated in population-based samples and selected hypertensive cohorts. Data from clinical practice are rather scant. Thus, we examined the prevalence and correlates of ARD in a large sample of hypertensive patients referred by general practitioners for a routine echocardiographic examination. Methods. A total of 2229 untreated and treated hypertensive subjects (mean age 62 years) referred to 17 outpatient echocardiographic laboratories across Italy for detection of hypertensive subclinical cardiac damage were included in the study. ARD was defined by aortic diameter exceeding 3.7 cm in women and 3.9 cm in men. Results. ARD was found in 263 patients, with an overall prevalence of 11.8% (16.9% in men and 6.2% in women, p <0.05). In multivariate regression analyses, body surface area (BSA), left ventricular (LV) mass and age were in ranking order the most important correlates of aortic root size in the whole population study as well as in men. In women, LV mass and its derivative indexes were the most important independent variables associated to aortic root size. Conclusions. This multicenter nationwide survey indicates that ARD is a frequent cardiovascular phenotype in hypertensives referred to echo-labs for detection of hypertensive organ damage. BSA, LV mass and age are the most important correlates of this phenotype. The hierarchical order of these factors differs between genders, LV mass being the strongest independent variable in women.
KW - Aortic root dilatation
KW - hypertension
KW - left ventricular mass
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=80053082302&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=80053082302&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3109/08037051.2011.565556
DO - 10.3109/08037051.2011.565556
M3 - Article
C2 - 21388253
AN - SCOPUS:80053082302
VL - 20
SP - 267
EP - 273
JO - Blood Pressure
JF - Blood Pressure
SN - 0803-7051
IS - 5
ER -