Carotid artery measures are strongly associated with left ventricular mass in older adults (A report from the Cardiovascular Health study)

Associations of carotid artery diameter and intimal-medial thickness by ultrasound with echocardiographic left ventricular (LV) structure were examined in 3,409 participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study, a population-based study of risk factors for coronary heart disease and stroke in men and women aged greater than or equal to 65 years, At baseline, sector-guided M-mode echocardiography and B-mode ultrasound were used to evaluate the left ventricle and carotid arteries, respectively. Common carotid artery diameter and intimal-medial thickness were significantly related to LV mass in correlational analysis (r = 0.40 and 0.20, respectively, p < 0.01), and each was independently associated with LV mass after adjustment for age, gender, weight, systolic and diastolic blood pressure, antihypertensive medication use, prior coronary heart disease, electrocardiographic abnormalities, high-density lipoprotein, and factor VH. We speculate that changes in the arterial wall affect impedance to LV ejection leading to increases in LV mass. further follow-up of this cohort is in progress and will help to determine whether such carotid artery measures could, by exacerbating LV hypertrophy, constitute another important risk factor for adverse cardiovascular outcomes.