P2.09 INCREASED CAROTID INTIMA MEDIA THICKNESS AND WAVE REFLECTION IN PATIENTS WITH INTRACRANIAL ANEURYSMS

Abstract

Background: whether or not the presence of intracranial aneurysms (IAs) is associated with alterations in systemic arteries is not known. Aim of the study was to evaluate morphology and distensibility of common carotid artery (CCA) in patients with IAs and in a control group of comparable age, gender and blood pressure (BP). Methods: twenty-eight IAs patients (19 women, mean age 55±12.2) and 27 control subjects (15 women, mean age 50±7.7) were studied. Vascular ultrasound implemented with arterial wall tracking (Aloka Alpha 10 Tokyo, Japan) was used to investigate elastic and structural properties of CCA. Indices of arterial stiffness and wave reflection (pressure independent index ß, arterial compliance (AC) and Augmentation Index (AIx) were obtained after calibration for BP. Mean CCA diameter was derived averaging systolic and diastolic values over ten cardiac cycle, while Intima Media Thickness (IMT) was measured according to the Mannheim consensus. Results: a significantly higher AIx was observed in patients with IAs (16.84±13.2 vs 11.1±9.6%, p<0.05), while ß didn’t differ between groups (9.08±4 vs 8.77±3.07). IAs patients showed a higher IMT than controls (0.77±0.23 vs 0.61±0.12, p<0.01) without difference in diameter (7.55±0.9 vs 7.4±0.7mm). IMT correlated directly (p<0.05) with ß (r=0.37), AC (r=0.38) and AIx (r=0.32) in IAs patients but not in controls. Conclusions: IAs patients show an increased IMT independent of age, BP and gender, which is related to increased wave reflection and arterial stiffness. This finding suggests an underlying systemic arterial involvement in patients prone to IAs.