Clinically Accessible Liver Fibrosis Association with CT Scan Coronary Artery Disease Beyond Other Validated Risk Predictors: The ICAP Experience

<b>Background/objectives:</b> Cardiovascular risk (CVR) stratification in clinical settings remains limited. This study aims to evaluate clinical parameters that could improve the identification of higher-than-expected coronary artery disease (CAD) in CT scan coronarography. <b>Methods:</b> In a cross-sectional study of asymptomatic patients from the Integrated Cardiovascular Assessment Program (ICAP), volunteers aged 40-80 without diagnosed cardiovascular disease were assessed. CVR factors like obesity, lipid and glucose profiles, liver fibrosis risk (FIB-4 ≥ 1.3), C-reactive protein, and family history of CVD were evaluated. Patients were stratified by CVR following ESC guidelines. "CVR excess" was defined as CAD-RADS ≥ 2 in low-to-moderate-risk (LMR), CAD-RADS ≥ 3 in high-risk (HR), and CAD-RADS ≥ 4 in very-high-risk (VHR) groups. <b>Results:</b> Among 219 patients (mean age 57.9 ± 1.15 years, 14% female), 43.4% were classified as LMR, 49.3% as HR, and 7.3% as VHR. "CVR excess" was observed in 18% of LMR, 15% of HR, and 19% of VHR patients. LMR patients with prior statin use and HR patients with obesity were more likely to have "CVR excess" (<i>p</i> < 0.01 and <i>p</i> < 0.05, respectively). FIB-4 modified the effect of statin use and obesity on "CVR excess" prediction (<i>p</i> for interactions < 0.05). Models including age, sex, and both interactions showed a strong discrimination for "CVR excess" in LMR and HR groups (AUROC 0.84 (95% CI 0.73-0.95) and 0.82 (95% CI 0.70-0.93), respectively). <b>Conclusions:</b> Suspected liver fibrosis combined with statin use in LMR patients and obesity in HR patients is associated with CVR excess, providing potential indications for image CAD assessment in asymptomatic patients.

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Journal
Journal of Clinical Medicine
Published
2025-02-13
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm14041218
Primary Topic
Liver Disease Diagnosis and Treatment
Type
article
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article

Clinically Accessible Liver Fibrosis Association with CT Scan Coronary Artery Disease Beyond Other Validated Risk Predictors: The ICAP Experience

Amparo Buenestado, G. Bastarrika, José A. Páramo, Marta Pastrana et al.
Journal of Clinical Medicine
Liver Disease Diagnosis and Treatment
article

Clinically Accessible Liver Fibrosis Association with CT Scan Coronary Artery Disease Beyond Other Validated Risk Predictors: The ICAP Experience

Amparo Buenestado, G. Bastarrika, José A. Páramo, Marta Pastrana, Sonsoles Guadalix, Diego Martínez‐Urbistondo, Belén García Izquierdo, Juan Pastrana Delgado, Inmaculada Colina
article en

Abstract

<b>Background/objectives:</b> Cardiovascular risk (CVR) stratification in clinical settings remains limited. This study aims to evaluate clinical parameters that could improve the identification of higher-than-expected coronary artery disease (CAD) in CT scan coronarography. <b>Methods:</b> In a cross-sectional study of asymptomatic patients from the Integrated Cardiovascular Assessment Program (ICAP), volunteers aged 40-80 without diagnosed cardiovascular disease were assessed. CVR factors like obesity, lipid and glucose profiles, liver fibrosis risk (FIB-4 ≥ 1.3), C-reactive protein, and family history of CVD were evaluated. Patients were stratified by CVR following ESC guidelines. "CVR excess" was defined as CAD-RADS ≥ 2 in low-to-moderate-risk (LMR), CAD-RADS ≥ 3 in high-risk (HR), and CAD-RADS ≥ 4 in very-high-risk (VHR) groups. <b>Results:</b> Among 219 patients (mean age 57.9 ± 1.15 years, 14% female), 43.4% were classified as LMR, 49.3% as HR, and 7.3% as VHR. "CVR excess" was observed in 18% of LMR, 15% of HR, and 19% of VHR patients. LMR patients with prior statin use and HR patients with obesity were more likely to have "CVR excess" (<i>p</i> < 0.01 and <i>p</i> < 0.05, respectively). FIB-4 modified the effect of statin use and obesity on "CVR excess" prediction (<i>p</i> for interactions < 0.05). Models including age, sex, and both interactions showed a strong discrimination for "CVR excess" in LMR and HR groups (AUROC 0.84 (95% CI 0.73-0.95) and 0.82 (95% CI 0.70-0.93), respectively). <b>Conclusions:</b> Suspected liver fibrosis combined with statin use in LMR patients and obesity in HR patients is associated with CVR excess, providing potential indications for image CAD assessment in asymptomatic patients.

Journal of Clinical MedicineVol. 14(4)
Clinica Universidad de Navarra (ES)
Openalex Percentile: Top 96%
Liver Disease Diagnosis and Treatment
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