Screening Cardiovascular Patients for Aortic aNeurysms (SCAN)

Screening Cardiovascular Patients for Aortic aNeurysms (SCAN)

The aim of the cohort study SCAN (Screening Cardiovascular patients for Aortic aNeurysms) is to establish a screening programm for patients with a high risk for an AAA. Aortic aneurysms in these patients should be identified at an early stage and thereby AAA-associated mortality be decreased.

A recently published meta-analysis showed a higher prevalence of aortic aneurysm (AAA) in men requiring treatment of coronary heart disaese compared to standard population. In women, however, the prevalence was not increased. Thus, the SCAN project addresses male patients who underwent coronary artery intervention in order to screen them for the presence of an AAA using duplex sonography.

The SCAN project involves the following elements:

1. Informing the patient with cardiovascular risk factors about the clinical picture of AAA
2. An ultrasound scan of the abdominal aorta in patients with an increased risk for AAA
3. Acquisition of patient data followed by a correlation analysis for the parameters presence of AAA and cardiovascular diseases

The cohort study is part of the SCAN project which is also conducted in an similar way by Catharina Ziekenhuis Eindhoven ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier:NCT01643317.

Inclusion Criteria:

• men with coronary artery intervention (PTCA/stenting)
• at least 1 risk factor for AAA (hypertension, hyperlipidaemia, hyperuricemia, nicotine abuse,positive family history)

Exclusion Criteria:

• life expectancy less than 1 year
• inability to follow the instructions of the investigator (dementia, lack of time, insufficient understanding of the language)
• insufficient compliance