Open AccessImpact of Cilostazol on the Progression of Carotid Atherosclerosis in Patients with Retinal Vascular Occlusion
Author(s) -
Kim SeongMan,
Cho KyoungIm
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
cardiovascular therapeutics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.818
H-Index - 46
eISSN - 1755-5922
pISSN - 1755-5914
DOI - 10.1111/1755-5922.12042
Subject(s) - medicine , cilostazol , cardiology , occlusion , retinal , internal carotid artery , carotid arteries , diabetic retinopathy , retinopathy , diabetes mellitus , ophthalmology , aspirin , endocrinology
Summary Background Cilostazol, a selective phosphodiesterase three inhibitor, has been proposed to have beneficial effects in the prevention of atherosclerosis. Aims We aimed to investigate the effects of cilostazol on carotid intima‐media thickening ( IMT ) and total plaque area ( TPA ) in patients with retinal vascular occlusion. Methods A total of 63 consecutive vascular occlusive retinopathy patients with carotid atherosclerosis were enrolled. We examined changes in the carotid IMT / TPA and visual acuity/macular thickness before and after 1‐year treatment with cilostazol (200 mg/day). Results The mean IMT of both common carotid arteries ( CCA s) and internal carotid arteries ( ICA s) were significantly reduced after cilostazol treatment. There was no significant difference in the TPA of both CCA s before and after the treatment (before; 0.61 ± 0.94 vs. after; 0.45 ± 0.79 cm 2 , P = 0.291); however, significant plaque regression (before; 0.14 ± 0.15 vs. after; 0.25 ± 0.14 cm 2 , P = 0.004) was observed in selected patients (n = 30) with a TPA <0.5 cm 2 . The improvement in macular thickness was significantly associated with an improvement in carotid IMT (r = 0.42, P = 0.001) and TPA (r = 0.23, P = 0.04). Conclusion Cilostazol potently inhibited the progression of carotid IMT and may play a role in the early carotid plaque regression in patients with retinal vascular occlusion.