- 著者
- Masahito Michikura Masatsune Ogura Masahiro Yamamoto Masahiko Sekimoto Chizuru Fuke Mika Hori Koji Arai Shinji Kihara Kiminori Hosoda Koji Yanagi Mariko Harada-Shiba
- 出版者
- The Japanese Circulation Society
- 雑誌
- Circulation Journal (ISSN:13469843)
- 巻号頁・発行日
- vol.81, no.12, pp.1879-1885, 2017-11-24 (Released:2017-11-24)
- 参考文献数
- 20
- 被引用文献数
- 34 32
Background:Difficulty in detecting and measuring Achilles tendon (AT) xanthomas may be responsible for underdiagnosis of familial hypercholesterolemia (FH). We aimed to determine a cutoff value for AT thickness (AT-T) using ultrasonography to diagnose FH, and to investigate the relationship between AT-T and atherosclerosis.Methods and Results:Ultrasonographic AT-T and carotid intima-media thickness (IMT) were evaluated in 130 genetically diagnosed FH patients and 155 non-FH patients. The outline and internal properties of the AT could be clearly determined using ultrasonography, and a good correlation in AT-T was observed between ultrasonography and the conventional method of X-ray radiography (r=0.924, P<0.001). Cutoff values for the diagnosis of FH derived from receiver-operating curves were 5.8 mm (sensitivity 71%, specificity 78%) in men, and 5.5 mm (sensitivity 80%, specificity 81%) in women. Importantly, increased AT-T was positively associated with carotid IMT only in the FH group. Additionally, increased AT-T was associated with the presence of coronary artery disease in a logistic regression analysis adjusted for traditional cardiovascular risk factors.Conclusions:This is the first study to determine a cutoff value for AT-T based on ultrasonography for the diagnosis of FH in Japanese subjects. Clearer detection and easier measurement of AT-T using ultrasonography would encourage clinicians to diagnose FH more actively, and could solve the problem of underdiagnosis of FH.
- 著者
- Masahito Michikura Masatsune Ogura Mika Hori Kota Matsuki Hisashi Makino Kiminori Hosoda Mariko Harada-Shiba
- 出版者
- Japan Atherosclerosis Society
- 雑誌
- Journal of Atherosclerosis and Thrombosis (ISSN:13403478)
- 巻号頁・発行日
- vol.29, no.11, pp.1603-1612, 2022-11-01 (Released:2022-11-01)
- 参考文献数
- 25
- 被引用文献数
- 4 8
Aims: Achilles tendon (AT) xanthomas are a specific physical finding of familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) and AT thickness has been used for its diagnosis and evaluation of its severity. Recently, we reported that the AT of FH patients was softer than that of non-FH patients and the combined use of a cut-off value for AT softness with that for AT thickness improved diagnostic accuracy. However, an association between AT softness and severity of atherosclerosis has not been reported. Accordingly, the present study aimed to investigate whether AT softness was associated with carotid atherosclerosis and presence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) in FH.Methods: The AT of 176 genetically diagnosed FH patients and 98 non-FH patients was examined to measure AT thickness and the elasticity index (EI) as an indicator for assessing AT softness using ultrasonography.Results: Increased age was associated with AT softness, and overweight was negatively related to AT softness. There were significant inverse correlations between EI and maximum and mean intima-media thickness (IMT) within the common carotid artery only among FH patients. In multiple linear regression analysis, although the relationship between EI and mean IMT was attenuated, the association between EI and maximum IMT remained robust. In logistic regression analysis adjusted for age, sex and traditional cardiovascular risk factors (smoking history, presence of hypertension, presence of diabetes mellitus, overweight, LDL-cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, and Log triglycerides), EI was associated with presence of ASCVD (Odds ratio per 1-SD increase, 0.37; 95% CI, 0.15 – 0.86; P=0.0252).Conclusion: The degree of lipid deposition in the AT of FH patients could be assessed by its thickness as well as its softness. AT softness is not only useful in diagnosing FH but is also associated with the severity of carotid atherosclerosis and presence of ASCVD. In addition, these findings suggest that AT softness would be helpful in risk assessment for FH patients.