Abstract Body: Background: Axial strain is a key indicator of arterial wall compliance. This study investigated the relationship between axial strain in the common carotid artery (CCA) and traditional cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors in a healthy adult population using ultrasound-based Lagrangian strain imaging.
Hypothesis: We hypothesize that axial strain indices in the CCA are influenced by Age,BMI, and blood pressure, with possible relationships to blood lipid levels and hemoglobin A1C.
Methods: A cohort of 80 healthy adults was assessed using axial strain indices, including mean peak strain (PS), peak-to-peak strain (P2P), and average L1-norm (AL1N) over a cardiac cycle, measured with B-mode ultrasound. Participants had a median age of 35 years (IQR 13.25), with 50% being female (n=40). Multiple linear regression was used to examine the relationship between axial strain indices and CVD risk factors (age, sex, BMI, smoking status [current], SBP, DBP, total cholesterol, HDL-C, LDL-C, triglycerides, hs-CRP, and hemoglobin A1C). Sex differences in CVD risk factors were assessed using Mann-Whitney U tests.
Results: After adjustment for CVD risk factors, age was inversely related to all axial strain indices suggesting decreased arterial compliance with increasing age (β=-0.697, p=0.006 for PS; β= -0.927, p=0.001 for P2P; β= -0.225, p=0.035 for AL1N). DBP and triglycerides also had inverse relationships (all p-values < 0.05). Positive relationships were identified between axial strain indices and BMI (β=1.522, p<0.001 for PS;β= 1.859, p<0.001 for P2P;β= 0.358, p=0.010 for AL1N), SBP (β=0.721, p<0.001 for PS;β= 0.683, P=<0.001 for P2P;β= 0.299, P=<0.001 for AL1N), and hemoglobin A1C (β=-14.66, p=0.036 for PS). L1-norm was the only axial strain index associated with total cholesterol (β=0.632, p=0.039) and HDL-C (β=-0.687, p=0.020) (Table). Of note, females (55.0 mg/dL) had significantly higher HDL-C compared to males (42.5 mg/dL), (Z=-4.66, p<0.001).
Conclusions: These findings suggest that measures of axial strain are associated with several CVD risk factors and demonstrate their potential for use as a research tool to characterize arterial health.