Diagnostic and prognostic value of a novel cardiac calcification score for coronary artery disease by transthoracic echocardiography

Calcification of cardiac structures is associated with calcification of atherosclerotic lesions indicating a genetic predisposition for dystrophic calcifications [ 1 Pradelli D. Faden G. Mureddu G. et al. Impact of aortic or mitral valve sclerosis and calcification on cardiovascular events and mortality: a meta-analysis. Int. J. Cardiol. 2013; 170: e51-e55 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (36) Google Scholar , 2 Roberts W.C. The senile cardiac calcification syndrome. Am. J. Cardiol. 1986; 58: 572-574 Abstract Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (183) Google Scholar ]. Furthermore, there are similar risk factors predisposing for coronary artery disease (CAD) and calcification of the mitral annulus and of other cardiac structures [ 3 Fox C.S. Vasan R.S. Parise H. et al. Mitral annular calcification predicts cardiovascular morbidity and mortality: the Framingham Heart Study. Circulation. 2003; 107: 1492-1496 Crossref PubMed Scopus (355) Google Scholar , 4 Kohsaka S. Jin Z. Rundek T. et al. Impact of mitral annular calcification on cardiovascular events in a multiethnic community: the Northern Manhattan Study. JACC Cardiovasc. Imaging. 2008; 1: 617-623 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (130) Google Scholar , 5 Otto C.M. Lind B.K. Kitzman D.W. et al. Association of aortic-valve sclerosis with cardiovascular mortality and morbidity in the elderly. N. Engl. J. Med. 1999; 341: 142-147 Crossref PubMed Scopus (1074) Google Scholar ]. The papillary muscle or ventricular septum was rarely evaluated in previous calcification scores [ 6 Corciu A.I. Siciliano V. Poggianti E. et al. Cardiac calcification by transthoracic echocardiography in patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease. Int. J. Cardiol. 2010; 142: 288-295 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (35) Google Scholar , 7 Konstandin M.H. Hardt S.E. Katus H.A. et al. Pronounced coronary artery calcification: casual finding in transthoracic echocardiography. Int. J. Cardiol. 2011; 150: e53-e54 Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF PubMed Scopus (1) Google Scholar ]. Thus, our study aimed to analyze the diagnostic and prognostic value of a new cardiac calcification score acquired by standard transthoracic echocardiography and to test its association with coronary artery disease phenotype.