Blood pressure variability and aortic atherosclerosis – Cause or consequence?

Effect of resveratrol supplementation on biomarkers associated with atherosclerosis in humans

Previous studies have suggested the beneficial effects of resveratrol against cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, there are inconsistent results on cardiovascular-related biomarkers mainly because of variable dosage, intervention time and baseline characteristics of the population. Thus, the exact effect of resveratrol remains unclear. We conducted a review to classify the studies that applied resveratrol to supplement humans according to the major biomarkers and identify which protocol characteristics would be associated with each result profile. Randomized clinical trials that assessed resveratrol effect on biomarkers related to atherosclerosis were searched in databases. Biochemical data were collected from 27 studies on the baseline and post-intervention time. We selected 12 biomarkers to compose the matrix, based on their clinical relevance and higher variation level. A total of 32 assays were obtained from these 27 studies. The net change (%) was calculated for each biomarker. Applying multivariate analysis, the assays were grouped into 3 clusters. Studies that composed Cluster II were characterized by a mean dose of 454.14 mg/day for 74.21 days and showed higher reduction of triglyceride concentration and blood pressure, while those composing Cluster III applied doses around 273.75 mg/day for about 175.33 days and showed the highest HDL increase. Thus, interventions with resveratrol could be customized according to the patient condition, in terms of "dose/time of intervention". This information can be applied to combine resveratrol with drugs to reduce blood pressure or improve lipid profile in further clinical studies.

Correlation of Cerebral White Matter Lesions with Carotid Intraplaque Neovascularization assessed by Contrast-enhanced Ultrasound

PURPOSE

Carotid atherosclerotic plaque is closely associated with cerebral white matter lesions (WMLs), while intraplaque neovascularization (IPN) contributes significantly to arterial remodeling and plaque vulnerability. In this study, we aim to evaluate the correlation of carotid IPN with cerebral WMLs.

METHODS

The presence of IPN and WMLs were assessed by contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and MRI respectively. IPN was evaluated utilizing semi-quantification visual grading scale and WMLs was divided according to Fazekas grading scale. We investigated the baseline data, Fazekas grades, and IPN grades among 269 participants. We explored the influences of each variable on Fazekas grades using ordinal logistic regression and evaluated the relationship between IPN grades and WMLs Fazekas grades.

RESULTS

Increased age (OR: 1.06, P<0.001), hypertension (OR: 2.17, P=0.002), cerebral infarction (OR: 1.74, P=0.046), and elevated carotid IPN grading were significantly associated with aggravated Fazekas grades (grade 2 or 3). To be specific, people having grade 3, 2, and 1 carotid IPN were 25.84 (P<0.001), 10.64 (P<0.001), and 5.96 (P=0.010) times as likely to have elevated Fazekas grades compared with those who having grade 0 carotid IPN.

CONCLUSION

Increased carotid IPN is independently correlated with aggravated cerebral WMLs.

Hypertension, C Reactive Protein and Metabolic Profile: What is the Scenario in Patients Undergoing Arteriography?

INTRODUCTION

High Blood Pressure (HBP), Diabetes Mellitus (DM), Metabolic Syndrome (MS) and Cardiovascular Diseases (CVD) are among the main causes of death worldwide and HBP is one of the most common chronic health problem representing an important and modifiable risk factor for vascular events and mortality.

AIM

To study the association among high sensitivity CRP levels, and the biochemical, and anthropometric profile in hypertensive and non-hypertensive patients who underwent arteriography.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This research was performed at the Haemodynamic Laboratory of the University Hospital in the city of Marilia - state of São Paulo, Brazil. Ninety-five subjects who underwent arteriography were included. Anthropometric (body mass index and waist circumference) and biochemical parameters (glycaemia, total cholesterol, HDL-c, LDL-c, triglycerides, and high sensitivity C reactive protein), were evaluated. Variables pertaining to blood pressure, atherogenic indices, diagnosis of metabolic syndrome and catheterization details were collected. Statistical analysis was performed with Chi-square test, Fisher, Student t-test and ANOVA complemented by Tukey test.

RESULTS

Our results showed that 78.95% of the patients who underwent arteriography were suffering from HBP. Hypertensive individuals had significantly higher glycaemia (124.14±45.33 mg/dL) or DM, higher values of triglycerides (195.27±74.52 mg/dL), waist circumference (98.52±12.52 cm), body mass index (29.99±1.41 kg/m²) and hs-CRP (0.53±0.44 mg/dL). Most of the hypertensive patients (93.33%) presented with MS and were related to the presence of more severe lesions in the arteries and had passed through more invasive procedures like angioplasty and surgery.

CONCLUSION

Our findings indicate that blood pressure control is of paramount importance to ensure better quality of life and life expectancy as it is associated with several risk factors that increase the morbidity and mortality.