Association of Aortic Valve Sclerosis with Previous Coronary Artery Disease and Risk Factors

Abstract

BackgroundAortic valve sclerosis (AVS) is characterized by increased thickness, calcification and stiffness of the aortic leaflets without fusion of the commissures. Several studies show an association between AVS and presence of coronary artery disease.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to investigate the association between presence of AVS with occurrence of previous coronary artery disease and classical risk factors.MethodsThe sample was composed of 2,493 individuals who underwent transthoracic echocardiography between August 2011 and December 2012. The mean age of the cohort was 67.5 ± 15.9 years, and 50.7% were female.ResultsThe most frequent clinical indication for Doppler echocardiography was the presence of stroke (28.8%), and the most common risk factor was hypertension (60.8%). The most prevalent pathological findings on Doppler echocardiography were mitral valve sclerosis (37.1%) and AVS (36.7%). There was a statistically significant association between AVS with hypertension (p < 0.001), myocardial infarction (p = 0.007), diabetes (p = 0.006) and compromised left ventricular systolic function (p < 0.001). Conclusion: Patients with AVS have higher prevalences of hypertension, stroke, hypercholesterolemia, myocardial infarction, diabetes and compromised left ventricular systolic function when compared with patients without AVS. We conclude that there is an association between presence of AVS with previous coronary artery disease and classical risk factors.

Aortic valve calcification: Time for a sex- and race-based assessment

“…Although AVC was initially believed to be the product of a degenerative process, emerging evidence suggests a strong relation between valvular calcification and atherosclerotic risk factors. This is supported by epidemiological studies showing that atherosclerosis and AVC share similar risk factors such as increasing age, male gender, hypertension, dyslipidemia, and smoking [7,8]. This is further reinforced by recent immunohistochemical studies that provide evidence of similar atherosclerosis pathological processes such as inflammatory cell mediated infiltration, lipid deposition, and active calcification [9,10].…”

Trace elements in patients with aortic valve sclerosis

“… 3 AVSc is characterized by increased stiffness, thickness, and calcification of the aortic leaflets without fusion of commissures. 4 , 5 AVSc is the most common valve disorder in developed countries 6 and is prevalent in Western countries. 7 About 25% of people aged 65 years and above have AVSc 8 and this increases to 50% at the age of 80 years.…”