PRELIMINARY MORPHOMETRIC DATA ON LIPID LESION DISTRIBUTION IN AORTAS OF YOUNG-PEOPLE (WHO-ISFC PBDAY STUDY)

As the MorphometriC Reference Center of the WHO-ISFC PBDAY Project (Pa thobiological Determinants of Atherosclerosis in Youth) we are studyin g lesion involvement of left hemiaortas of young people from different parts of the world. Gross specimens were stained and photographed at the Malmo reference Center (Dir. Prof. N.H. Sternby). Percentage of li pid lesions were evaluated and probability maps of lipid lesion distri bution at the aortic surface were obtained by image processing. In all samples from Italy, Mexico and Sri Lanka, high probability of lipid l esion occurrence was found between the emergences of the intercostal a rteries, next to the emergence of the celiac trunk, between the emerge nce of the superior and inferior lumbar arteries and between the emerg ence of the lst and the 2nd mesenteric arteries. Our data reveal that a) lipid lesions are localized in low shear-stress regions or in turbu ecent regions; b) our samples taken from groups of different geographi cal origin present the same lipid lesion distribution at the aortic su rface.