Research Information System
CORONARY ARTERY DISEASE, vol.17, no.4, pp.365-369, 2006 (SCI-Expanded)
Background Coronary artery ectasia has been defined as localized or diffuse nonobstructive lesions of the epicardial coronary arteries With a luminal dilation exceeding the 1.5-fold of normal adjacent segment or vessel diameter. Although coronary artery disease is supposed to be responsible for more than 50% of coronary ectasia, the precise pathology of coronary artery ectasia is not clearly understood. The brachial artery ultrasound test for flow-mediated endothelial-dependent vasodilatory function includes administration of sublingual nitrates to examine the vasodilating effect of an exogenous source of nitric oxide. In the present study, we aimed to compare flow-mediated and nitrate-mediated responses of brachial artery in patients with coronary artery ectasia and patients with coronary artery disease.