Abstract

BackgroundTakayasu arteritis (TA) can involve cardiac valves. In Chinese patients with TA, valvular abnormalities were found in 48.9% (201/411) patients[1,2]. Another research showed that cardiac valvular involvements were found in 34.9% (373/1069) TA patients in China[3], and in a recent study, they also found that 64.08% (66/103) of TA patients had valvular damage[4]. In addition, the most common valve involved in TA is the aortic valve, and the most common valvular lesion caused by TA is valvular insufficiency. The incidence of aortic regurgitation in patients with TA has been reported as 33.2% (455/1372) in Japan[5], 21.7% (13/60) in Italy[6], 18.1% (29/160) in Korea[7], and 20.4% (84/411)[1] to 39.8% (41/103)[4] in China. AR can further induce congestive heart failure or arrhythmia, both of which are considered one of the main causes of death in TA patients[8].ObjectivesAortic valve involvement is not uncommon in patients with Takayasu arteritis (TA). The aim of our study was to evaluate the clinical characteristics of aortic valve involvement in TA patients, and to explore the risk factors of aortic valve involvement in TA.MethodsIn this retrospective study, 174 patients with TA were divided into groups with or without aortic valve involvement. We compared the clinical manifestations, laboratory parameters, and imaging results between the two groups. The logistic regression analysis was used to identify the risk factors of aortic valve involvement in TA patients.ResultsIn our study, a total of 94 TA patients (54.02%) had aortic valvular lesion. The proportion of elevated ESR and elevated high-sensitivity CRP, and ITAS-A score in the aortic valve involvement group were significantly higher than in the non-aortic valve involvement group. 2 patients were found to have the infiltration of Inflammatory cells in surgical specimens of the aortic valve. The Numano type IIb and elevated hs-CRP level were found to be statistically related to aortic valvular lesion in TA patients (6.853 [1.685-27.875], p=0.007; 4.896 [1.646-14.561], p=0.004). Dilation of the ascending aorta and aortic root were significantly associated with aortic valvular involvement in TA patients (4.509 [1.517-13.403], p=0.007; 9.340 [2.188-39.875], p=0.003).ConclusionThe Numano type IIb, elevated hs-CRP level, dilation of the ascending aorta and aortic root are risk factors for aortic valve involvement in TA patients.

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