Relationship between carotid artery atherosclerosis and coronary heart disease in elderly patients with chronic bronchitis

AIM:To investigate whether the extent of carotid atherosclerosis is associated with coronary heart disease (CHD) in elderly patients with chronic bronchitis. METHODS: Carotid ultrasound was performed in 328 patients. According to the results of coronary angiography, patients were divided into four groups: one-vessel group (n=102), two-vessel group (n=62), multi-vessel group (n=84) and normal control group (n=80). The intima-media thickness (IMT) and the degree of carotid atherosclerosis were compared among the four groups. RESULTS: A statistically significant difference in carotid artery IMT and plaque score was observed between control group and coronary artery disease (CAD) groups (P<0.05), especially between two-vessel and multivessel groups. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that carotid atherosclerosis is a good predictive marker for coronary heart disease. Ultrasound examination of the carotid artery is of some value in screening high-risk patients with coronary artery disease.