Abstract:

Objective To explore the clinical value of ultrafast ultrasound imaging（UFUI）in measuring carotid artery elasticity in patients with gouty arthritis（GA）. Methods Totally 102 GA patients were selected， and according to whether combined with bone erosion，they were divided into non⁃bone erosion GA group（n = 52） and bone erosion GA group（n = 50）. In addition，54 healthy volunteers in our hospital for physical examination during the same period were included in the control group. Blood pressure，blood lipids，uric acid，carotid artery⁃ media thickness（IMT），pulse wave velocity at the beginning of the systole（BS），and at the ending of the systole （ES）in all the participants were compared. Results （1）Uric acid，IMT，BS and ES in the GA group were signif⁃ icantly higher than those in the control group（P < 0.05）. There was no difference in age，body mass index，systol⁃ ic blood pressure，diastolic blood pressure，total cholesterol，triglycerides and high⁃density lipoprotein cholesterol in the GA group when compared with the control group（P > 0.05）.（2）In the GA group，the BS，ES and the course of the disease of the bone erosion group were significantly higher than those of the non⁃bone erosion group（P < 0.05）. There was no difference in IMT，age，body mass index，blood pressure，blood lipids and uric acid between the two subgroups（P > 0.05）.（3）BS and ES of GA group were positively correlated with IMT. The pulse wave velocity at the beginning of the systole of the control group，the non⁃bone erosion GA group and the bone erosion GA group were（5.12 ± 0.76）m/s，（5.90 ± 0.84）m/s and（6.81 ± 0.76）m/s，respectively. The pulse wave velocity at the ending of the systole of the control group，the non ⁃bone erosion GA group and the bone erosion GA group were（6.93 ± 0.96）m/s，（8.60 ± 1.19）m/s and（9.50 ± 0.79）m/s，respectively. Conclusion BS and ES are increased in GA patients；carotid artery stiffness is increased and the elasticity is down. UFUI technology can detect the changes of carotid artery elastic function in GA patients in the early time，which provides important referencefor early clinical evaluation of carotid atherosclerosis.

Key words:

ultrafast ultrasound imaging, gouty arthritis, pulse wave velocity, carotid artery elastici? ty, atherosclerosis