Relationship among Carotid Artery Atherosclerosis,the Level of High Sensitivity C-reactive Protein and Ischemic Cerebral Infarction in the Elderly

Objective To study the relationship among varying degrees of carotid artery atherosclerosis,the level of high sensitivity C-reactive protein and ischemic cerebral infarction in the elderly over 60.Methods Carotid artery color Doppler ultrasonography was performed in 200 old patients,their levels of high sensitivity C-reactive protein were measured,and their cranial CT or MRI was performed.The incidence of carotid atherosclerosis was observed in different ages.The relationship among cerebral infarction,carotid atherosclerosis plaques with different grades and the level of high sensitivity C-reactive protein were analyzed.Results The detection rates of carotid plaques and carotid plaque grade 2 or more in patients of advanced age were significantly increased(P0.01).The incidence of cerebral infarction in the plaque group was significantly higher than that in the non-plaque group(P0.01).The level of hs-CRP was higher in carotid plaque grade 2 or more in patients(P0.01).The group of cerebral infarction had higher level of hs-CRP than the group of non-cerebral infarction(P0.01).Conclusions The advanced age is an important risk factor for aggravating degree of carotid artery atherosclerosis.Carotid atherosclerosis plaque is closely correlated with cerebral infarction.The higher of the plaque grade is,the higher of the incidence of cerebral infarction.So ultrasonography can be used to estimate the mechanism of ischemia and evaluate its risk factors.The level of hs-CRP is closely associated with the occurrence and development of cerebral infarction,it may become the biological markers in early detection and predicting the prognosis of cerebral infarction.