Cardiovascular Diseases & Diagnosis

Prevalence of Significant Carotid Artery Stenosis in Patients with Significant Atherosclerotic Peripheral Arterial Disease

Abstract

Abu Arab TM*, Ramzy AAEW, and Ghareeb M

Background: Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) and carotid occlusive disease (COD) are both known to be specific manifestations of atherosclerosis so can be correlated to each other. An important area of investigation is to identify those with significant carotid artery stenosis (CAS) to reduce the risk of cerebrovascular events. Duplex ultrasound scanning (DUS) is considered a valuable imaging modality to evaluate carotid arteries with high sensitivity and specificity and virtually non-existent hazards. Objectives: We investigated the prevalence of significant CAS among patients with severe peripheral vascular disease (PVD) using carotid duplex. Methods: A total of 50 patients with PVD diagnosed as having significant PAD by peripheral angiography (PA) underwent carotid duplex scanning. Data were collected concerning known risk factors. Significant CAS was defined as a stenosis of 70% or greater. Results: The mean age was 61.6 ± 8.5 years, male (88%). Out of the 50 patients with significant PAD, 7 patients (14%) had significant Carotid Stenosis of which 6 patients (12%) had severe stenosis and 1 patient (2%) had totally occluded carotid artery. CAS was correlated with diabetes, hypertension, dyslipidemia, smoking, coronary artery disease and severity of symptoms. On multivariate analysis, Diabetes and Dyslipidemia seemed to have independent influence. Conclusion: Significant CAS is prevalent among patients having significant PVD. Patients with PAD may be a suitable subgroup for screening for CAS using Carotid duplex, especially those with diabetes, dyslipidemia and positive CRP. Keywords: Carotid artery stenosis; Carotid duplex peripheral