Association of lipid accumulation products, or cardiometabolic index with asymptomatic intracranial arterial stenosis: a population-based study in Shandong, China

This study aimed to investigate the association of novel obesity indicators (lipid accumulation product [LAP] and cardiometabolic index [CMI]) with asymptomatic intracranial arterial stenosis (aICAS), particularly in different obesity statuses. The study included 1,994 participants (aged ≥ 40 years) from the Rose Asymptomatic Intracranial Artery Stenosis (RICAS) study, free of stroke or transient ischemic attack. Participants with aICAS were screened using transcranial Doppler ultrasound and diagnosed via magnetic resonance angiography. Multivariate logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were used to explore the association of LAP or CMI with aICAS. A total of 146 participants were diagnosed with aICAS. Higher levels of LAP and CMI were associated with aICAS, particularly with moderate-to-severe aICAS. Notably, LAP was significantly associated with aICAS (OR 1.58; 95% CI, 1.00-2.49; P = 0.048), and was showed the highest area under the curve (AUC, 0.654) among the three indicators (LAP, CMI, and BMI) in underweight and normal-weight participants (Body mass index [BMI] ≤23.9 kg/m²). In the obesity population (BMI ≥28.0kg/m2), CMI was significantly associated with aICAS (OR 1.40; 95% CI, 1.11-1.77; P = 0.005), and was showed the highest AUC (0.610). This study found a positive association between elevated levels of LAP or CMI and aICAS. Furthermore, LAP was significantly correlated with aICAS in underweight and normal weight individuals, while CMI was associated with aICAS in obesity individuals. Our findings may provide additional risk stratification information for aICAS.