Diameter of the Orifice of the Left Coronary Artery: Angiographic Study

Abstract

The ongoing advances in the technology of coronary artery angiograms have put high demands on the basic knowledge of coronary arteries. This study describes the angiographic morphology of the ostium (orifice) of the left coronary artery among Sudanese with respect to sex, age, length, and BMI. The study design is a cross-sectional retrospective hospital-based conducted from 2014 to 2016. The inclusion criterion of participants is adult males and females presented to the cardiac centers for elective angiograms. The exclusion criteria are age below 18 years, documented congenital heart disease, and previous coronary bypass. Angiograms were done using a digital radiographic system. Data was collected through a predesigned data collection sheet. The data were entered and analyzed using SPSS v27. A test of correlation was done between the different variables. The data were presented in the form of tables. A P-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. The total number of participants was 441; males and females represent 42.9 % and 57,1 %, respectively. The mean age of participants was 56.24±8.68 years. The left coronary artery originated from the left aortic sinus. The mean diameter and length of the left coronary artery were 3.8±0.70 mm and 8.1576±4.32 mm, respectively. A significant negative correlation was reported between the diameter of the orifice and both age and length of the left coronary artery. A non-significant difference between males and females in the diameter of the left coronary artery at ostium (P=0.058) and a significant difference in the length (P=0.00). Sudanese have the smallest diameter of the orifice of the left coronary artery among Africans. Sudanese males have a smaller diameter of orifice than females; females have the longest arteries. A wider orifice of the left coronary artery is associated with a short arterial length.