Quantitative and qualitative features of carotid and coronary atherosclerotic plaque among men and women

Onnis, Carlotta;Cadeddu Dessalvi, Christian;Cademartiri, Filippo;Muscogiuri, Giuseppe;Angius, Simone;Contini, Francesca;Suri, Jasjit S;Sironi, Sandro;Salgado, Rodrigo;Esposito, Antonio;Saba, Luca

Last

2022-01-01

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Abstract

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), particularly ischemic heart disease (IHD) and stroke, present epidemiologically in a different way among sexes. The reasons of these sex-based differences should be delved into sex-specific cardiovascular (CV) risk factors and different mechanisms of atherosclerotic progression. Imaging techniques of both carotid and coronary atherosclerotic plaques represent a tool to demonstrate sex-related features which might be used to further and better assess CV risk of male and female population. The aim of this review is to evaluate current knowledge on sex-specific qualitative and quantitative plaque features of coronary and carotid atherosclerosis. We also discuss the clinical implication of a sex-based plaque phenotype, evaluated with non-invasive imaging techniques, such as CT-angiography and MRI-angiography, to stratify CV risk.