Prevalence and clinical profile of angiographic coronary artery ectasia among North Indian population

Abstract

Background: Coronary artery ectasia (CAE) has been widely recognized as not so infrequent form of coronary artery disease. Few retrospective studies from the Indian subcontinent have reported its prevalence to be varying from 1.9% to 10%. No large-scale study has been done among North Indian population. Methods: A prospective analysis of all coronary angiograms performed at our catheterization laboratory, between June 2012 and February 2014, was done. CAE was defined and classified according to the Markis classification. For every patient included, epidemiological, clinical, and appropriate laboratory data were obtained. Results: One hundred and twenty-four out of 3,014 coronary angiograms (4.1%) showed CAE. Mean age of the study population was 55.5 years. About 86.3% were male, 50.8% were current smokers, 27.4% had hypertension, 16.1% had diabetes mellitus, and 32.3% had dyslipidemia. The most common clinical presentation was ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, observed in 44.4% of cases. Right coronary artery (RCA) was the most frequent coronary artery to be involved. Markis Class 3 was the most frequent pattern of CAE observed. Conclusion: The prevalence of coronary ectasia among North Indian patients undergoing coronary angiography was 4.1%. Of them, 16.9% angiograms showed isolated CAE. RCA was the most common affected vessel (58.1%). Large-sized studies to delineate treatment for this common entity are needed.