Is There a Side Predilection for Cerebrovascular Disease?

In studies on carotid artery intima-media thickness and stroke, researchers implicitly assume that cerebrovascular abnormalities show a symmetrical distribution. To evaluate whether there is a difference in intima-media thickness between the 2 carotids, we compared left and right common carotid artery intima-media thickness as measured by B-mode ultrasonography in a group of 102 untreated hypertensive patients. This yielded a significant difference between both sides (left, 0.75±0.11 mm; right, 0.71±0.11 mm; P <0.001). This was associated with a higher cross-sectional area of the intima-media complex and a higher flow velocity at the left side. Arterial diameters, however, were not different. We also assessed whether there is a side preference with respect to cerebrovascular accidents. To this end, we explored our population-based Stroke Registry of 1843 subjects and indeed found a significantly higher incidence of nonlacunar cerebrovascular stroke at the left side, whereas lacunar infarcts were symmetrically distributed. Our findings suggest a predilection for cerebrovascular disease at the left side, which may be related to greater hemodynamic stress and intimal damage in the left carotid artery.