830 Why We Should Be Looking for A Diagonal Ear Lobe Crease In ENT. A Meta-Analysis of Diagonal Ear Lobe Crease and Coronary Artery Disease

Abstract

Abstract Introduction An association between a diagonal ear lobe crease (DELC) and cardiovascular disease, was first suggested by Sanders T. Frank in 1973(1). Since then, there have been numerous further studies that have investigated the association of ‘Frank’s Sign’ with carotid disease, cerebral vascular disease, and diabetic retinopathy. This review looks to see if there is a significant association between the presence of a DELC and coronary artery disease (CAD). Method Meta-analysis of selected studies, published between 1974 and 2017, using the PRISMA checklist(2). Results We included 12 studies in the pooled analysis, which included 2415 cases and 2545 controls. Our study found that patients with DELC, have an increased likelihood of having CAD (OR 4.61). Also, despite some previous studies suggesting that DELC was simply a result of age, all ten of the included studies that looked at this found that the relationship between DELC and CAD was independent of both age and other known cardiovascular risk factors. Conclusions We found that DELC is associated with CAD independently of other known cardiovascular risk factors, including age. Patients with DELC appear to have a substantially increased risk of CAD, and this may be higher for patients with bilateral DELC.