RESUMO
Aim of the study was to determine whether structural and functional status of arteries differ between young and middle-aged men with ischemic heart disease (IHD). A total of 78 men aged 28 to 50 years were recruited in this study: 49 with angiographically proven obstructive atherosclerosis of coronary arteries, 29 without clinical manifestations of IHD (control group). Those with arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus or marked hypercholesterolemia (LDL cholesterol more or equal 4.5 mmol/l) were excluded from the study. All patients underwent carotid ultrasound, endothelial function, and arterial stiffness measurements. Patients with IHD more often had multiple carotid plaques (86.7% vs 13.7%, p<0.001), and increased aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) assessed by ultrasound duplex scanning (53.1% vs. 24.1%, p=0.02). Aortic PWV was related to the severity of coronary atherosclerosis. Presence of a carotid intima-media thickness more or equal 0.9 mm and abnormal flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) of the brachial artery was not significantly different between the groups.
