Abstract 1192: The Association of Pericardial Fat With Coronary Artery Plaque by MRI: The Multi-ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA)

Background: Pericardial fat releases more inflammatory cytokines compared to subcutaneous fat, which may lead to coronary atherosclerosis. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the relationship of coronary artery plaque, expressed by the eccentricity of coronary artery wall thickness, versus volume of pericardial fat. Methods and materials: Coronary artery MRI for 94 male participants without clinical cardiovascular disease (61± 9 yrs) in the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA) was performed at 1.5 T. Coronary artery wall images were acquired from left main (LM), the proximal portions of left anterior descending (LAD) and right coronary artery (RCA) using a black-blood TSE technique. Coronary artery wall images were analyzed and the maximum and minimum wall thicknesses were measured. Coronary artery plaque eccentricity was defined as maximum/minimum wall thickness. The volume of pericardial fat and coronary artery calcium score (CAC) were measured by CT scans. Carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) was obtained by ultrasound. Linear regression was used to determine the relationship of coronary plaque eccentricity to height-adjusted pericardial fat, cardiovascular risk factors, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference, C-reactive protein (CRP), CAC, and carotid IMT. Results: Mean coronary plaque eccentricity was 2.4± 0.9, mean volume of pericardial fat 88.8±53.8 cm 3 . There was a significant relationship of plaque eccentricity to pericardial fat volume (p=0.0007). An increment of 1 s.d. (53.8 cm 3 ) in height-adjusted pericardial fat was associated with a 0.3 increase of the plaque eccentricity. The relationship remained significant in multi-variable models (p=0.004) after adjusting for BMI, height-adjusted waist circumference, and cardiovascular risk factors. These relationships remained significant after further adjustment for CAC and IMT (P=0.01). Height-adjusted waist circumference and BMI were not related to coronary plaque eccentricity. CRP was positively related to the plaque eccentricity in univariate model (p=0.01). Conclusion: Pericardial fat was associated with coronary plaque eccentricity in male participants with subclinical atherosclerosis, independent of BMI and cardiovascular risk factors.