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Noninvasive Phenotypes Of Atherosclerosis: Similar Windows But Different Views, J. David Spence, Robert A. Hegele

Department of Medicine Publications

Background and Purpose-Noninvasive measures of atherosclerosis, such as carotid intima-media thickness, total carotid plaque area, and carotid stenosis, probably represent different phenotypes with distinct determinants. For instance, total carotid plaque area may reflect atherosclerotic lesion size more closely than carotid stenosis, which instead may reflect hemodynamic compromise within the arterial lumen. Methods-In 1821 patients from a Premature Atherosclerosis Clinic, we studied determinants of total carotid plaque area and carotid stenosis as measured by ultrasound using multivariate regression analysis with traditional risk factors and some emerging risk factors. Results-Regression modeling showed that (1) traditional atherosclerosis risk factors were more strongly associated …