Table 3.
Comparison of clinical characteristics and carotid plaque features in patients with and without subsequent vascular events (n = 153).
| Mean ±SD or n (%) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Patients with vascular events (n = 61) |
Patients without vascular events (n = 92) |
P-value | |
| Clinical information | |||
| Age, years | 60.2 ± 9.7 | 58.0 ± 13.3 | 0.341 |
| Gender, male | 45 (79.3) | 63 (71.4) | 0.483 |
| BMI, kg/m2 | 25.9 ± 3.7 | 25.2 ± 3.1 | 0.147 |
| Antihypertension treatment | 39 (63.9) | 40 (42.9) | 0.008 |
| History of hyperlipidemia | 23 (37.7) | 40 (42.9) | 0.432 |
| HDL, mg/dL | 1.1 ± 0.6 | 1.1 ± 0.4 | 0.530 |
| LDL, mg/dL | 2.9 ± 1.6 | 2.7 ± 1.1 | 0.957 |
| TG, mg/dL | 1.5 ± 0.9 | 1.7 ± 1.0 | 0.336 |
| TC, mg/dL | 4.3 ± 1.3 | 4.3 ± 1.2 | 0.850 |
| Hcy, μmol/L | 18.1 ± 11.2 | 16.3 ± 10.5 | 0.119 |
| Lipid lowering treatment | 24 (39.3) | 43 (46.4) | 0.305 |
| History of smoking | 35 (57.4) | 49 (56.0) | 0.618 |
| History of diabetes | 14 (23.0) | 28 (28.6) | 0.292 |
| History of CHD | 7 (11.5) | 10 (9.5) | 0.907 |
| H-Hcy hypertension | 31 (50.8) | 26 (28.3) | 0.005 |
| Isolated hypertension | 18 (29.5) | 33 (35.9) | 0.415 |
| Isolated H-Hcy | 5 (8.2) | 12 (13.0) | 0.352 |
| Presence of plaque components | |||
| Calcification | 29 (47.5) | 28 (31.0) | 0.052 |
| Lipid-rich necrotic core | 46 (75.4) | 45 (47.6) | 0.002 |
| Intraplaque hemorrhage | 9 (14.8) | 12 (14.3) | 0.915 |
| High risk plaque | 13 (21.3) | 21 (28.6) | 0.214 |
BMI, body mass index; HDL, high-density lipoprotein; LDL, low-density lipoprotein; TG, triglycerides, TC, total cholesterol; Hcy, homocysteine; H-Hcy, hyper-homocysteine; CHD, coronary heart disease.