Authors

• Melisa Mehmedović — Clinic for the treatment, prevention and rehabilitation of diseases of the heart and blood vessels - Thalassotherapia Opatija, Opatija, Croatia — ORCID: 0000-0002-2283-8256
• Mijana Barišić — Clinic for the treatment, prevention and rehabilitation of diseases of the heart and blood vessels - Thalassotherapia Opatija, Opatija, Croatia — ORCID: 0000-0001-5774-7488
• Gabrijela Pandur — Clinic for the treatment, prevention and rehabilitation of diseases of the heart and blood vessels - Thalassotherapia Opatija, Opatija, Croatia — ORCID: 0000-0001-5683-8791
• Kristina Marić — Clinic for the treatment, prevention and rehabilitation of diseases of the heart and blood vessels - Thalassotherapia Opatija, Opatija, Croatia — ORCID: 0009-0002-1703-2386
• Anamarija Maras — Clinic for the treatment, prevention and rehabilitation of diseases of the heart and blood vessels - Thalassotherapia Opatija, Opatija, Croatia — ORCID: 0009-0004-7729-4833
• Althea Sarah Valdino — Clinic for the treatment, prevention and rehabilitation of diseases of the heart and blood vessels - Thalassotherapia Opatija, Opatija, Croatia — ORCID: 0009-0009-8394-6806

Keywords

ankle-brachial index, coronary heart disease, peripheral arterial disease, risk factors

DOI

Full Text

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the most common and significant cardiovascular disease that represents a public health problem. Atherosclerosis is considered the leading cause. In addition to coronary heart disease and cerebrovascular disease, we also include peripheral arterial disease, the underlying cause of which is atherosclerosis of blood vessels. The presence of peripheral arterial disease affects the morbidity and mortality of patients with CHD, as shown by earlier studies. The ankle-brachial index (ABI) is a direct indicator of the risk of cardiovascular mortality, and the presence of peripheral arterial disease in correlation with the pathological finding of the ABI increases mortality by as much as six times. (1, 2) The ABI is a simple, diagnostic, non-invasive method that shows high sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing peripheral arterial disease when the ABI is ≤0.9. It is also a strong indicator of atherosclerotic disease in other arterial areas. Previous studies have shown that the ABI is an indicator of increased risk for CHD and has predictive power in detecting CHD. (3, 4)

Literature

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2. Ankle Brachial Index Collaboration, Fowkes FG, Murray GD, Butcher I, Heald CL, Lee RJ, Chambless LE, et al. Ankle brachial index combined with Framingham Risk Score to predict cardiovascular events and mortality: a meta-analysis. JAMA. 2008 July 9;300(2):197–208. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.300.2.197
3. Núñez D, Morillas P, Quiles J, Cordero A, Guindo J, Soria F, et al. PAMISCA study researchers. Usefulness of an abnormal ankle-brachial index for detecting multivessel coronary disease in patients with acute coronary syndrome. Rev Esp Cardiol. 2010 January;63(1):54–9. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1885-5857(10)70009-8
4. Banfić Lj. Periferna arterijska bolest - nedovoljno prepoznat čimbenik ukupnog kardiovaskularnog rizika. Medix. 2010;16(87-88):133-9. Available at: (September 20, 2023). https://www.kardio.hr/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/133-139.pdf