ABSTRACT
Introduction: Acanthosis nigricans (AN) is a dermatosisthat clinically manifests as asymptomatic and symmetricaldarkening of the skin, and it is associated with hyperinsulemia,obesity and metabolic syndrome. Previous studies have shownan increased risk of Acanthosis nigricans and atherosclerosis.Aim: To study correlation of atherosclerosis with Acanthosisnigricans of temporal region of face compared to neck, asassessed by carotid intima media thickness.Material and Methods: The study included 66 patients whoare clinically diagnosed as Acanthosis nigricans of temporalregion of face and 66 patients with Acanthosis nigricans ofneck, attending the outpatient department of dermatology,Amala Institute of Medical Sciences, Thrissur betweenJanuary 2017 – September 2018. All patients were screenedfor diabetes mellitus and for insulin resistance by measuringfasting blood sugar, and insulin level. The two groups weresent to measure the Carotid Intima Media Thickness (CIMT).CIMT values ≥ 75th percentile are considered high andindicative of increased CVD risk.Result: The mean CIMT in group 1 and group 2 were0.8192 and 0.6159 respectively. The mean CIMT of patientswith Acanthosis nigricans over temporal region of face inour study was 0.8192 which was higher compared with themean CIMT of patients with Acanthosis nigricans over neck(p value is - 0.001).Carotid plaque was present in 4 patientswith Acanthosis nigricans over temporal region of face. Ingroup one, 28 patients (42%) had increased CIMT value (≥75thpercentile) and in group two, 11 patients (16.6%) hadincreased CIMT value. In our study, increased CIMT wasassociated with metabolic syndrome, insulin resistance,diabetes mellitus, hypertension and hypertriglyceridemia.Conclusion: There is higher prevalence of atherosclerosis inpatients with Acanthosis nigricans over temporal region offace (42.42%).This suggest that there is an increased chancefor cardiovascular events.