ANEURYSMS OF THE ABDOMINAL-AORTA IN OLDER ADULTS - THE ROTTERDAM STUDY

To assess the age- and sex-specific prevalence and risk factors for an eurysms of the abdominal aorta, the authors performed a population-bas ed study in 5,419 subjects (42% men, 58% women) aged 55 years and over , The proximal and distal diameter of the abdominal aorta were measure d by ultrasound. An aneurysm was defined as a distal aortic diameter o f 35 mm or more or a dilatation of the distal part of the abdominal ao rta of 50% or more. The mean distal and proximal aortic diameter incre ased 0.7 mm and 0.3 mm, respectively, with every 10 years of age. In 2 .1% (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.7-2.5) of the study population, an aneurysm was present, or in 4.1% (95% CI 3.2-4.9) of the men and 0.7% (95% CI 0.4-1.0) of the women. Subjects with an abdominal aneurysm we re more likely to be smokers and they had higher serum cholesterol lev els and higher prevalence of cardiovascular disease compared with subj ects without an aneurysm. The authors conclude that the ultrasound dia meter of the abdominal aorta clearly increases with age in both men an d women and that the prevalence of aneurysms of the abdominal aorta in older adults is relatively high, especially in men.