Endocrine Abstracts

Introduction: Aortic dilation (AD) is the life threating complication of Turner syndrome (TS). The reported prevalence of AD in TS various between 12 and 39%. Factors predicting enlargement of diameter of aorta (DA) are still under investigation.

Aim: To assess the prevalence of AD in TS in Lithuanian population, to evaluate the possible predictors of AD development.

Methods: Forty-three patients with TS aged ≥18 year were enrolled into the prospective cross-sectional study. Cardioechoscopy was used to evaluate DA. DA was adjusted for body surface area. AD was defined as DA >2.0 cm/m². Age, congenital cardiovascular disorders (CCD), karyotype, metabolic parameters (BMI, HOMA index), heart ratio (HR), blood pressure (BP), Estrogens (E), Testosterone (T) levels duration of Growth Hormone (GH) and E use, E initiation time were evaluated in the relation to AD.

Results: The dilation of the root of aorta (ADR) was reported in 37.2% (n=16) of the cases, the dilation of ascending (ADA) aorta was observed in 31% (n=13). When summarized ADR and ADA the prevalence of AD increased up to 48.8% (n=21).

The largest diameter of the root of aorta (DAR) had strong negative correlation with BMI (r=−0.7, P<0.001), HOMA index (r=−0.408, P=0.009), E initiation age (r=−0.33, P=0.031). DAR correlated with HR (r=0.37, P=0.014), duration to E use (r=0.347, P=0.023), T level (r=−0.34, P=0.028).

The largest diameter of ascending aorta correlated with the duration of GH use (r=0.406, P=0.009), and T level (r=−0.38, P=0.014).

The frequency of AD did not differ between the classic (45, X0) and nonclassic karyotype (non-45, X0) or the presence of CCD. There was no relationship between BP, age and DA.

Conclusion: The prevalence of AD in TS in Lithuania was higher than reported in other studies. HOMA index correlation with AD was identified for the first time.