Atherosclerosis of unpaired visceral branches of the abdominal aorta (clinical and instrumental diagnostics)

Aim. To establish the prevalence of atherosclerotic lesions in the unpaired visceral artery branches of the abdominal aorta. To explore the features of clinical presentation, the state of the mucosa of the upper GI tract. Materials and methods. A total of 118 patients with atherosclerosis of the unpaired visceral artery branches of the abdominal aorta aged 45 to 89 years were examined. The comparison group included 120 patients without atherosclerosis in the unpaired visceral artery branches of the abdominal aorta. Patients in both groups had coronary atherosclerosis. Ultrasound dopplerography (USDG) as a screening technique, CT angiography, and MSCT aortography were used to verify occlusion-stenotic lesions in the unpaired visceral artery branches of the abdominal aorta. The diagnosis of erosion changes in the gastric mucosa was confirmed by clinical symptoms and endoscopic examination findings. Results. In our study, hemodynamically relevant stenosis (>70%) was identified in 28.8% of patients. The clinical presentation of atherothrombosis in mesenteric vessels was shown to be nonspecific. Abdominal pain was the most common symptom in the examined patients with abdominal angina (76.3%). The upper GI endoscopy in patients with a verified diagnosis of chronic abdominal ishemia (CAI) showed gastric mucosa atrophy (focal or diffuse) in 100% of cases. Gastric erosions are identified in 55.1% of patients. Gastric ulcers are observed in 27.1% of patients. Erosive and ulcerative lesions of the gastric mucosa are combined with atrophic changes in the mucosa. Erosive esophagitis was detected in 28.8% of patients. The frequency of detected focal abnormalities in the esophageal mucosa accounts for 27.3%, and those in the gastric mucosa is 54.2%, mainly due to intestinal metaplasia. Conclusion. Due to the increasing prevalence of obliterative vascular diseases, early detection of changes in the upper gastrointestinal tract remains an urgent challenge. The comprehensive endoscopic examination using additional endoscopic NBI and ZOOM techniques allows to identify all changes in the mucosa, including small focal abnormalities. Timely detection of the disease makes it possible to choose the right treatment method.