Review of plaque characteristics in individuals with sudden coronary death

Vascul Pharmacol. 2023 Oct 26:107240. doi: 10.1016/j.vph.2023.107240. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTCoronary artery disease (CAD) remains the leading cause of death in the Western world in individuals >20 years of age. CAD is the most common substrate underlying sudden cardiac death (SCD) in the Western world, being responsible for 50-75% of SCDs. In individuals dying suddenly with coronary thrombosis, plaque rupture occurs in 65%, plaque erosion in 30% and calcified nodule in 5%. We evaluated the extent of calcification in radiographs of hearts from patients dying of SCD and showed that calcification is absent in nearly 50% of erosion cases whereas only 10% of plaque rupture show no calcification. Conversely, stable plaques with>75% cross-sectional area luminal narrowing show the severest calcification (moderate to severe) in nearly 50% of cases. Identifying individuals who are susceptible to atherosclerosis may help reduce the incidence of SCD.PMID:37898379 | DOI:10.1016/j.vph.2023.107240
Source: Vascular Pharmacology - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Authors: Source Type: research