Angiographic severity of coronary artery disease and the influence of major cardiovascular risk factors.

Abstract

To determine the angiographic severity of coronary artery disease (CAD) and assess the influence of major cardiovascular risk factors (CVRF). a cross-sectional, hospital-based study. the catheterisation laboratory of the National Cardiothoracic Centre, Accra, Ghana. for 12 months, consecutive patients admitted for coronary angiography were assessed for the presence of CVRFs. Those with significant CAD after angiography were recruited into the study. The patient's angiograms were analysed, and the CAD severity was obtained using the SYNTAX scoring criteria. The lesion overall severity (SYNTAX) score and the relationship with CVRFs present. out of the 169 patients that had coronary angiography, 78 had significant CAD. The mean SYNTAX score was 20.18 (SD= 10.68), with a significantly higher value in dyslipidaemic patients (p < 0.001). Pearson's correlation between the score and BMI was weak (r= 0.256, p= 0.034). The occurrence of high SYNTAX score lesions in about 18% of the population was significantly associated with hypertension (OR= 1.304, 95% CI [1.13-1.50]; p= 0.017) dyslipidaemia (OR= 5.636, 95% CI [1.17-27.23]; p= 0.019), and obesity (OR= 3.960, 95% CI [1.18-13.34]; p= 0.021). However, after adjusting for confounding factors, only dyslipidaemia significantly influenced its occurrence (aOR= 5.256, 95% CI [1.03-26.96]; p= 0.047). Even though the most severe form of CAD was found in about one-fifth of the study population, its occurrence was strongly influenced by the presence of dyslipidaemia. None.