Carotid remodeling in essential hypertension: role of blood pressure, indexed parameters, and association with cardiac mass and aortic stiffness.

The role of blood pressure on carotid remodeling, using no indexed and indexed parameters, was studied in essential hypertension. Carotid parameters were also compared to cardiac mass and aortic stiffness. Forty untreated hypertensive men had echocardiography, carotid ultrasonography and carotidfemoral pulse wave velocity measurements. Cross-sectional area index was associated essentially with the 24-hour systolic blood pressure whereas intima-media thickness was related especially to the 24-hour pulse pressure. Carotid intima-media thickness and cross-sectional area indexes were less related to blood pressure variables than non-indexed parameters. There is an independent association between 24-hour pulse pressure and left ventricular mass index and pulse wave velocity. To conclude, blood pressure, particularly pulse pressure, is associated with vascular and cardiac alterations. The indexation by the body surface area do not provide any additional information in the association between carotid and blood pressure parameters.