Leukocyte Count Is Better than LDL-C as Predictor of Novel Carotid Atherosclerosis

BackgroundThis continuous retrospective cohort study aims to(1)screen the risk factors and cut-off values of initial occurrence of carotid atherosclerosis(CAS) and(2)identify whether the pathological procession of CAS is from carotid intima-media thickening(C-IMT) to carotid plaques CAP). MethodsBetween 2015 and 2024, the characteristics were recorded at three time points, which were the meaningful time point for the first new appearance of CAS or not, the baseline time point for the previous closest normal carotid status, and the validated time point for the first confirming the meaningful results. Statistics analyses, including students t test, Mann-Whitney U test, and Chi-square test, assessed the different results between observation group and healthy controls. Logistic regression, Cox regression, ROC curves and Kaplan-Meier analysis were used for screening the risk factors and cut-off points. Repeated-measures ANOVA was used for comparison between the groups and within each group. ResultsOf 3583 recruited participants, the final study analyses included 1141 individuals, there was no significant change in the proportion of C-IMT and CAP during continuous observation of a 1.04 years (P=0.561). After performed Propensity score matching for age and gender, leukocyte count 5.00*109/L and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) 125.1mg/dl were significantly associated with the new appearance of CAS over a 1.09 years follow-up period compared to the reference group. Leukocyte count high level group was associated with CAS (log-rank P=0.01), nevertheless LDL-C was no significant difference (log-rank P=0.055). ConclusionsMiddle aged adults(aged 49.6{+/-} 8.0)with leukocyte count above 5.00*109/L were more likely progress CAS after an average of 1.09 years. CAS new lesions had no obvious specificity and no significant changes were found after an average of 1.04 years. This study identified early specific markers that predict the appearance of CAS in order to guide the timing of early lifestyle interventions.