Value of duplex ultrasound of carotid and lower extremity arteries in the restratification of cardiovascular risk and initiation of lipid-lowering therapy

Abstract

Aim. To study the role of duplex ultrasound (DU) of carotid and lower extremity arteries in the restratification of cardiovascular risk (CVR) and changing the indications for lipid-lowering therapy.Material and methods. The study included 291 patients aged 40-64 years without established atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases. All patients underwent DU of carotid and.Results. Carotid DU make it possible to restratify 140 (65,7%) patients with low/moderate CVR (out of 213) into the category of high/very high CVR. Lower extremity artery DU resulted in the restratification of 101 (47,4%) patients with low/moderate CVR (out of 213) into the category of high/very high CVR. The use of a multifocal ultrasound technique demonstrated the highest restratification power and allowed 161 (75,6%) patients (out of 213) to be assigned to the high/very high CVR group. The use of peripheral arterial DU led to an increase in the number of high-risk patients by 2,33-3,02 times. The proportion of persons with indications for lipid-lowering therapy increased from 50 (21,0%) patients to 170 (71,4%).Conclusion. In patients aged 40-64 years without established atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases, the use of DU of carotid and lower extremity arteries made it possible to classify 75,6% of patients with low/moderate CVR in the group of patients with high and very high CVR. According to CVR reclassification, the proportion of patients with indications for lipid-lowering therapy increased from 21,0 to 71,4% of patients.