Coronary artery of heart

Fig. 3. Prevalence of atherosclerosis in coronary arteries of heart transplant recipients grouped by age [data taken from Tuzcu et al. (15), reproduced with permission]. Intravascular ultrasound was performed in 262 heart transplant recipients after transplantation to investigate coronary arteries in young asymptomatic subjects. Extensive imaging of all possible (including distal) coronary segments was performed, and 2014 sites within 1477 segments in 574 coronary arteries (2.2 arteries per person) were analyzed. Sites with intimal thickness > 0.5 mm were defined as atherosclerotic. Prevalence of atherosclerosis varied from 1 7% in individuals < 20 y old to 85% in subjects > 50 y old. Overall prevalence of atherosclerosis was similar in men and women (52 and 51.7%, respectively).

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