The following is a summary of “Is coronary artery calcium an independent risk factor for white matter hyperintensity?,” published in the August 2023 issue of Neurology by Jin et al.
Cardiovascular issues drive global mortality. Coronary artery calcium (CAC) indicates coronary atherosclerosis severity. Researchers performed a retrospective study to investigate the relationship between CAC and white matter hyperintensity (WMH) in the context of diagnostic utility.
They examined 342 patients diagnosed with WMH on magnetic resonance images (MRI), all of whom had undergone chest computed tomography (CT) scans. An algorithm measured WMH volumes, and subjects were categorized into four groups by their CAC scores from the CT scans. A mixed-effects linear regression model, factoring in common vascular risk factors, assessed the link between total WMH volume and CAC score.
The results showed participants with coronary artery calcium (CAC score > 0) displayed larger WMH volumes compared to those without calcium (CAC score = 0). WMH volumes exhibited significant variation among the four CAC score groups, showing a substantial rise as CAC scores increased. In linear regression model 1, a 1% rise in CAC score yielded a 2.96% WMH volume increase for the high CAC score group. Despite considering additional covariates in models 2 and 3, the β coefficient for the high CAC group remained higher than that in the low and medium CAC score groups.
They concluded CAC is correlated with WMH volume in elderly adults, suggesting a comorbid mechanism.
Source: bmcneurol.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12883-023-03364-7