Progression of aortic valve calcification - Association with coronary atherosclerosis and cardiovascular risk factors

Background-Recent studies demonstrated an influence of atherosclerotic risk factors on the progression of aortic valve stenosis. The extent of aortic valve calcification (AVC) was also found to be a strong predictor of stenos is progression. We investigated the influence of the LDL cholesterol level (LDL), other standard cardiovascular risk factors, and the extent of corona ry calcification (CC) on the progression of AVC quantified by electron beam tomography (EBT). Methods and Results-In 104 patients (64.7 +/-8 years, 89 male) with an EBT scan positive for AVC, CC and AVC were quantified using a volumetric score. EBT was repeated at a mean interval of 15 months (10 to 36 months), and th e progression of AVC and CC was determined. Patients were divided into 2 gr oups according to LDL: group 1, LDL less than or equal to3.36 mmol/L (130 m g/dL), 57 patients; group 2, LDL >3.36 mmol/L (130 mg/dL), 47 patients. Mea n values for CC were 546 +/- 932 mm(3) in scan 1 and 665 +/- 1085 mm(3) in scan 2 for AVC 324 +/- 796 mm(3) and 404 +/- 1076 mm(3), respectively. The mean progression of CC was 27 +/- 37% (group 1, 16 +/- 22%; group 2, 39 +/- 46%, P less than or equal to0.001) and of AVC was 25 +/- 38% (group 1, 9 /- 22%; group 2, 43 +/- 44%, P less than or equal to0.001). Conclusions-Quantification of AVC by EBT permits new insights into the prog ression of aortic valve sclerosis. We observed a strong influence of LDL ch olesterol level on the progression of AVC and CC, suggesting that lipid-low ering therapy may decrease the progression of aortic valve calcification.