Search results for "Sclerosis"
showing 10 items of 1583 documents
Impact of Metabolic Syndrome on Atherosclerotic Burden and Cardiovascular Prognosis
2007
Patients with metabolic syndrome (MS) are at increased risk of cardiovascular atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of MS on cardiovascular prognosis in context with atherosclerotic burden. A total of 811 patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) were included and carotid and leg arteries were examined using sonographic methods. Patients with low (CHD only, n = 428, 52.8%) or high atherosclerotic burden (CHD and peripheral atherosclerosis, n=383, 47.2%) were compared. Patients withor=3 of the following criteria: triglyceridesor=150 mg/dl, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol40 mg/dl (men) and50 mg/dl (women), body mass index30 kg/m2, blood pressureor=130/85 mm H…
Carotid intima media thickness and coronary atherosclerosis linkage in symptomatic intermediate risk patients evaluated by coronary computed tomograp…
2014
Background: There is a growing evidence that carotid intima media thickness (CIMT) is associated with coronary artery disease (CAD) and it should be used as a predictor of atherosclerotic burden of coronary arteries. However, these studies have been performed by using invasive coronary angiography (ICA) and in high-risk patients for CAD. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the correlation between CIMT by ultrasound and coronary atherosclerosis in symptomatic intermediate risk patients by coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA). Methods: We enrolled 204 consecutive symptomatic patients (mean age: 61 +/- 10; men: 118) and intermediate risk for CAD. All patients underwent CIMT ul…
Impact of symptomatic atherosclerosis in patients with pulmonary embolism
2019
Atherosclerosis is associated with increased cardiovascular mortality. Associations between venous thromboembolism and atherosclerosis were recently reported. We aimed to investigate the impact of symptomatic atherosclerosis on adverse outcomes in patients with pulmonary embolism (PE) and to identify significant differences among patients with PE stratified by symptomatic atherosclerosis.Patients were selected by screening the nationwide inpatients sample for PE (ICD-code I26) stratified by symptomatic atherosclerosis (composite of coronary artery disease [ICD-code I25], myocardial infarction [ICD-code I21], ischemic stroke [ICD-code I63], and/or atherosclerotic arterial diseases [ICD-code …
Impact of Systemic Atherosclerosis on Clinical Characteristics and Short-Term Outcomes in Patients with Deep Venous Thrombosis or Thrombophlebitis
2020
Venous thromboembolism (VTE) and atherosclerosis are accompanied by substantial cardiovascular mortality; links between both disease entities were reported. We aimed to investigate the impact of systemic atherosclerosis on adverse outcomes in patients with deep venous thrombosis or thrombophlebitis (DVT) and to identify differences in DVT patients with and without systemic atherosclerosis.The German nationwide inpatient sample was used for this analysis. Patients admitted for DVT were included in this study and stratified by systemic atherosclerosis (composite of coronary artery disease, myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, and/or atherosclerotic arterial diseases). We compared DVT patie…
Exenatide once-weekly improves metabolic parameters, endothelial dysfunction and carotid intima-media thickness in patients with type-2 diabetes: An …
2019
AIM: To evaluate the effect of exenatide long acting release (LAR) on carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) and endothelial function in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. METHODS: Sixty subjects with type 2 diabetes mellitus were treated with exenatide LAR as add-on to stable doses of metformin for 8 months in an open label study. Anthropometric variables, lipid profile and glycemic parameters were assessed by routine analysis. Carotid IMT by Doppler ultrasound and endothelial function by flow-mediated dilation of the brachial artery were also assessed. RESULTS: Exenatide significantly improved fasting glycaemia (from 8.8 ± 2.8 to 7.3 ± 2.2 mmol/L, p < 0.0001), HbA1c (from 8.0 ± 0.4 …
Impaired Vitamin D Signaling in Endothelial Cell Leads to an Enhanced Leukocyte-Endothelium Interplay: Implications for Atherosclerosis Development
2015
Endothelial cell activation leading to leukocyte recruitment and adhesion plays an essential role in the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis. Vitamin D has cardioprotective actions, while its deficiency is a risk factor for the progression of cardiovascular damage. Our aim was to assess the role of basal levels of vitamin D receptor (VDR) on the early leukocyte recruitment and related endothelial cell-adhesion-molecule expression, as essential prerequisites for the onset of atherosclerosis. Knockdown of VDR in endothelial cells (shVDR) led to endothelial cell activation, characterized by upregulation of VCAM-1, ICAM-1 and IL-6, decreased peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) ro…
Serum alkaline phosphatase negatively affects endothelium-dependent vasodilation in naïve hypertensive patients.
2015
Tissue nonspecific alkaline phosphatase, promoting arterial calcification in experimental models, is a powerful predictor of total and cardiovascular mortality in general population and in patients with renal or cardiovascular diseases. For this study, to evaluate a possible correlation between serum alkaline phosphatase levels and endothelial function, assessed by strain gauge plethysmography, we enrolled 500 naïve hypertensives divided into increasing tertiles of alkaline phosphatase. The maximal response to acetylcholine was inversely related to alkaline phosphatase ( r =−0.55; P <0.001), and this association was independent ( r =−0.61; P <0.001) of demographic and classical risk …
A case-control study of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
1991
A retrospective case-control study was conducted using 46 patients affected by amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and 92 closely matched healthy controls. Cases were ascertained through typical clinical and instrumental findings. Putative risk factors (bone fractures or major trauma, exposure to domestic animals, surgical operations, disease among first degree relatives and others) were investigated anamnestically using a standard questionnaire. Using Mantel-Haenzsel estimates of the odds ratio, no association was found between amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and the investigated variables.
MTHFR C677T allelic variant is not associated to plasma and cerebrospinal fluid homocysteine in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
2014
Amiotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a neurological disorder with a multifactorial etiopathogenesis including excitotoxicity, intracellular calcium increase and mitochondrial damage together with oxidative stress and apoptosis. Overall, the relationship between homocysteine (Hcy), motoneuron death and ALS appears to be complex and still under investigation. It has been already shown that Hcy is elevated in plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of ALS patients, although mechanisms of hyperhomocysteinemia have not been elucidated yet. MTHFR C677T variant is the most common genetic determinant of increased homocysteinemia, but no studies regarding the effect of this polymorphism in ALS patien…
Epidemiology of multiple sclerosis in Sicily
2001
From epidemiological data obtained over more than 20 years by surveys conducted in different parts of Sicily, it is evident that Sicily is a high-risk area for multiple sclerosis (MS). This is in sharp contrast with the gradient hypothesis. High frequencies have been found in different parts of the island having different geoclimatic features, but at least two cities (Monreale and Enna) had had a prolonged Norman domination. This is in agreement with the hypothesis that MS originated in Northern Europe and spread around the world throughout the raids of the northern peoples. The increase in frequency estimated by follow-up and incidence studies is well established and is only in part linked…