Background: Type 2 diabetic patients have increased arterial stiffness and are at particular risk for augmented cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. As diabetes is a systemic disease and it has a higher incidence of having a greater extent of atherosclerosis, it can affect the coronary arteries as well as the aorta.
Objective: Assessment of the effect of diabetes mellitus on the aorta by calculating aortic stiffness parameters using echocardiography measurements, and using these parameters as a predictor for coronary artery disease (CAD) presence and severity.
Patients and Methods: This study was conducted within one year from October 2018 until October 2019. Fifty diabetic patients were enrolled, suspected to have chronic stable coronary artery disease by symptoms and risk factors, divided into two groups after coronary angiography: Group I included patients with coronary artery disease, and group II with normal coronaries. All patients were subjected to full history taking, general and local examination, echocardiography including calculation of aortic stiffness parameters, laboratory investigations and coronary angiography.
Results: Thirty-six per cent of the patients had normal coronaries, and sixty-four per cent had coronary lesions. Aortic systolic and diastolic diameters were significantly higher in group I compared to group II. Aortic stiffness index and elastic modulus were significantly higher in group I and aortic distensibility was significantly lower in group I compared to group II. Stiffness index and elastic modulus had a positive correlation with the complexity of CAD based on SYNTAX score and aortic distensibility had a negative correlation with it. Aortic stiffness index had the highest sensitivity and a cutoff value of > 17.4 to detect CAD.
Conclusion: Aortic stiffness index has the highest predictive power for CAD presence and severity meaning that the patients with higher aortic stiffness index most probably will have a higher chance of having a complex CAD.